The largest gay rights rally in state history was organized on Facebook.

Will Elliott, a 35-year-old Durham resident, was upset about the passage of a California initiative banning gay marriage last November.

He contacted a national group planning protests about holding something in Raleigh, but when no one got back to him after a few days, he went online.

Late on a Sunday, Elliott invited about 50 friends to a Facebook Events page, then was stunned when more than 300 said they would come by mid-week.

"We kept having to call the state back to update our application" for a permit, he said.

On the day of the rally, more than 1,400 showed up despite driving rain. Elliott is now planning a commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall riots through his Facebook group, NC against H8.

He said his group is a counterpart to the more staid Equality North Carolina.

"The civil rights movement of the '60s and '70s didn't just have the NAACP," he said.