BOISE, Idaho — In what has rapidly become a heated and expensive public battle, the conservative leadership of Idaho’s Republican-controlled government has taken a firm stand against the expansion of LGBT civil rights in the state. In moves that have outraged many gay rights activists and supporters — both in and outside the state — the Idaho government has spent more than half a million dollars of taxpayer money to defend its ban on same-sex marriage in federal courts and could spend even more. Lawmakers have also blocked legislation that would protect individuals from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, sparking condemnation from LGBT rights groups. Same-sex couples in Idaho could legally marry starting October 2014, after a federal judge struck down the state’s 2006 voter-approved constitutional ban on same-sex marriage and domestic legal unions — one of the strictest such laws in the country. “I was actually at the courthouse the day people were starting to be able to get married,” said Gary Simpson, who founded OutBoise, the city’s first LGBT magazine. “There was a lot of celebration. People were happy. They were celebrating.”

‘It’s crazy that we would spend so much time fighting against something that 63 percent of the country is in support of.’ Gary Simpson founder, Boise’s first LGBT magazine

Republican legislators in Idaho have blocked legislation that would make it illegal to discriminate against individuals on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. “Idaho is a right-to-work state, but it’s a state where you can still be fired for being gay,” Simpson said. “We still have a long way to go before things are accepted for our community here.” The legislation is commonly called Add the Words, in reference to demands to add "sexual orientation" and "gender identity" to the state's Human Rights Act. The campaign has used civil disobedience to make discrimination against LGBT individuals a public issue, said activist and former state legislator Nicole LeFavour. “When I was elected in 2004 to the legislature, a lot of people in there didn’t think they had ever met a gay person before,” said LeFavour, who was Idaho’s first openly gay lawmaker. “The environment is so split in terms of rural and urban, in terms of just local dynamics that create some really, really toxic environments for gay people [in Idaho] — and especially young gay people.” Activists started organizing in 2012 and by 2013 were protesting in and around the Idaho Capitol. In February 2014, 44 protesters — including LeFavour — were arrested for blocking the entrance to Idaho’s Senate. More than 100 Add the Words protesters were arrested last year. On March 2 of this year, 23 Add the Words protesters — again including LeFavour — were arrested for disrupting legislative business. After nearly 20 hours of emotional testimony, all 13 Republicans on the State Affairs Committee in Idaho’s House voted to block the bill after it was introduced earlier this year. The committee’s four Democrats all voted in favor of the bill. The Idaho Statesman reported that Republican lawmakers who voted against the bill said the bill's supporters had legitimate concerns, suggesting there may be room for a compromise.

‘When I was elected in 2004 to the legislature, a lot of people in there didn’t think they had ever met a gay person before. The environment is so split in terms of rural and urban, in terms of just local dynamics that create some really, really toxic environments for gay people.’ Nicole LeFavour Idaho’s first openly gay lawmaker