“A Closer Look” hosts Rose Scott and Denis O'Hayer interview Sarah Kate Ellis of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation.

While the greater acceptance of homosexuality in recent years has resulted in same-sex marriage laws in a majority of states, public opinion poll results in the South trail other parts of the country.

That’s among the reasons a leading gay rights organization is taking its message across the South.

The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation’s “Southern Stories” tour made a stop in Atlanta this week, and it features a collection of stories told by gay Georgians about themselves.

On “A Closer Look,” GLAAD CEO Sarah Kate Ellis said that, in some cases, pro-gay policies like marriage equality are “outpacing hearts and minds.”

“What we found is that we have a lot of work to do to accelerate acceptance in this country, especially in the South,” Ellis said.

A six-state bus tour has included meetings with faith leaders in a deeply religious region.

Ellis said she met faith leaders who are pro-gay, but “they struggle with how they bring their communities along with them.”

It’s part of what she called “a journey to acceptance” that has included everyone from President Barack Obama to everyday Americans coming to terms with gay family members.

Ellis did want to avoid a “love the sinner, hate the sin” mentality.

“Being gay isn’t a sin, but I want to be respectful of the process too, and it is a journey … We need to leave room for that journey, but we have to be clear. Being gay is not a sin,” Ellis said.

She predicted that Southern acceptance of gays would improve if the Supreme Court rules to strike down bans on gay marriage.

Georgia is one of the 14 holdouts against gay marriage, with voters having approved a state constitutional ban in 2004.