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Dog owners and advocates in Hawaii are rallying in protest of a proposed state law to ban pit bulls.

In the first of several protests planned on Oahu, dozens of dog owners called Sunday for state lawmakers to dismiss a bill that would ban pit bulls, the Honolulu Star-Bulletin reported.

Hundreds of Oahu residents signed a petition started by several community members at a rally at Magic Island  to protest the bill, as dozens of residents, wearing shirts that protest breed-specific legislation, lined Ala Moana Boulevard to draw awareness to their cause.

Senate President Colleen Hanabusa introduced the bill after a constituent asked that a pit bull ban be discussed. Residents of Kauai, Molokai, Maui and the Big Island have also held protests against the bill, which would make it a misdemeanor to sell or own an American pit bull terrier, American Staffordshire terrier or Staffordshire bull terrier.

Several cities across the U.S., including Denver, have instituted pit bull bans after pit bull attacks, and three were reported to have taken place in Hawaii last month, the newspaper said.

Advocates of the ban say it would protect the public from pit bulls, but pit bull owners say the legislation discriminates against the breed.

“My dogs are my family,” said Elizabeth Cabibi, 37, who recently moved from Seattle to Ewa Beach with her two pit bulls. “Breed bans don’t work. People that are responsible like us, we’re being punished. People that are not following the law are going to continue to not follow the law.”