Gavin Newsom reflects on a historic day in California...

San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom granted marriage licenses to same-sex couples back in February of 2004 and has remained an important ally in this particular fight for equality.

But he told Advocate.com Tuesday that he hasn't had a chance to join the crowds in public celebration:. "I have to be careful, because there are friend and foe out there," he says. "So I have to be more cautious. I wish I could go out there with a ballcap and glasses."

But he did have one private moment today when on the way to City Hall, he pulled his car over a half-block away just to take in the spectacle of couples preparing to marry.

"People say 'My life was changed four years ago,'" he says. "Today, we're reinforcing that." Newsom adds that the mood is very different now than it was in 2004. "Then, it felt like you were doing something that you shouldn't be doing -- but you knew it was right. This time, we have permission to do it."

To read the entire interview, go to Advocate.com