San Francisco ? Less than 24 hours after same-sex marriage licenses in San Francisco came to a halt, six gay and lesbian couples filed a lawsuit Friday claiming they are being denied constitutional rights.

The challenge filed by the National Center for Lesbian Rights, the American Civil Liberties Union and Lambda Legal aims to put a human face on the legal wranglings, lead attorneys said.

A Friday news conference set out to achieve that as two couples, one of whom brought a 16-year-old nephew and sister to speak in support, expressed why they’re participating in the suit.

The legal action was filed almost a month after gay rights advocates Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon, a lesbian couple together for 51 years, stepped into City Hall and became the first same-sex partners to get a license on Feb. 12.

“What we intend to do through this action filed today is challenge that discrimination, change the landscape for lesbian and gay couples in California and to assure that no lesbian couple ever again who wishes to have legal recognition has to wait 51 years for that to happen,” said Kate Kendall, executive director for the National Center for Lesbian Rights.

The state Supreme Court on Thursday ordered the city to stop authorizing same-sex marriage licenses. It had performed 4,161 same-sex marriages and has 2,688 applications.

Kendall said the lawsuit might be wrapped into another challenge filed late Thursday by San Francisco.

Lawyers representing the couples said the state high court’s action was a first step toward ruling on the issue. The high court will have hearings about the legality of the licenses in May or June.

Kevin Gardner puts up a sign in favor of gay marriage outside of City Hall in San Francisco. Gardner protested Friday, a day after the California Supreme Court ordered a stop to same-sex marriages. Nearly 2,700 same-sex couples who had appointments to get married in San Francisco have been left at the altar by the ruling.