CHARLOTTE – Same-sex couples legally married in other states are being encouraged to start registering their documents in North Carolina courthouses.

It’s all part of a new statewide campaign by the Campaign for Southern Equality to draw attention to North Carolina’s ban on gay marriage.

The group says by creating a public record of their relationships, same-sex couples will highlight the reality that they are legally married in the eyes of the federal government, but not North Carolina.

The group’s executive director, the Rev. Jasmine Beach-Ferrara, says registering marriage licenses will create a public record that demonstrates the couples’ love and commitment.

The call comes one week after Buncombe County Register of Deeds Drew Reisinger became one of the first officials in the South to take marriage license applications from same-sex couples.