An Atlanta man is suing the state of Georgia, saying that his civil rights were violated after being denied several vanity license plates that would have made reference to his sexual preference.

Last year James Cyrus Gilbert applied for several different license plates announcing his support for homosexuality. In his lawsuit, Gilbert says he tried to get "4GAYLIB," "GAYPWR," and "GAYGUY" but was denied each time.

Like many states, Georgia has a list of vulgarities, subjects, and words that are banned from vanity plates, and authorities say any reference to sexual predilections is banned in the Peach State.

Gilbert says he doesn't believe his requests were vulgar or "over the top."

Neither the Georgia Department of Driver Services nor the Georgia State's Attorney's Office have agreed to comment on the lawsuit.