One of the purposes of the recently defeated state gay rights law was to bring greater acceptance and understanding of the idea that, however one felt about homosexuality, gay Mainers deserved all the rights and freedoms granted to heterosexuals. It’s an important idea, but one that may be lost if communities rush their own gay rights proposals into law so soon after the vote.

Proposals in Bar Harbor and Camden already have come forward. Other tourist-dependent communities may offer similar proposals. They should go slow. Clearly, the message about gay rights is still being confused statewide with red herrings about “special rights” and other conspiracy theories. That makes for a poor atmosphere in which to bring the state together.

The result may be that for every town that passes a gay rights law another town, where voters defeated the state measure, passes a law to limit local human rights legislation. That’s an extreme result but not impossible, and it would do more to divide this state over the issue than even the Feb. 10 vote accomplished.

Gay rights advocates should take the repeal vote seriously. The Mainers who bothered to vote last month said they did not want what they perceived the law represented. Perceptions have not changed in the last four weeks. Simply pushing through a law where the vote favored the gay-rights side does nothing to increase understanding where understanding is most needed.

There are some good groups, particularly the Maine SpeakOut Project, that, without hyperbole, explain the value of a gay rights law. They need to be invited to more places around the state to present their case.

And the state needs to pause and take a collective deep breath and work this thing out — together.