Nearly 30,000 members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community from all across the Philadelphia area joined together yesterday inside the Gayborhood in celebration of National Coming Out Day.
OutFest: The National Coming Out Day Block Party -- which has been held annually for more than 12 years -- gathered a wide array of vendors, organizations, entertainers and other participants, all united by the LGBT cause.
"It's National Coming Out Day, so [OutFest] is supposed to celebrate a beginning of a process of self-realization," said Chuck Volz, senior adviser to Philly Pride Presents, Inc. "And that is what this is all about -- people coming out, admitting that they are gay and getting to know their community."
Spanning from Walnut to Spruce streets along 12th and 13th streets, OutFest was the largest coming-out party in the nation. PPP, a Philadelphia LGBT group focused on planning citywide events, organized the day's festivities.
The event attracted a number of students from Penn's LGBT community.
"Walking around today, it was amazing to see how many people there were, how much energy there was and how friendly everyone was to you," said Anand Sitaram, a first-year graduate student in Biology.
A native of Texas, Sitaram said he came to Penn to experience a community that was more accepting of gays. And the people at OutFest, he added, proved to be appreciative, open and responsive.
"It's a nice way to see the community coming together."
OutFest is Philadelphia's second largest LGBT event behind Pride Day, which is held in June during international Gay Pride Month.
Crowds were entertained by DJs and emcees, intermixed with a multitude of colorful performers. There was a high-heeled race and a penis-shaped bagel-eating contest, as well as workouts by 12th Street Gym.
But the event wasn't just entertainment and fun -- it had a distinct political flavor as well.
Not only were a number of civil rights and political awareness groups present, but Democratic Senate candidate Joe Hoeffel made an unscheduled appearance to rally the local LGBT community. Hoeffel discussed the pro-LGBT policies that the Democratic Party has on its agenda.
Kerry-Edwards '04 stickers, posters and other insignia covered the eight-square-block area.
"We are educating the LGBT community that the Kerry-Edwards ticket supports equal rights for gay families," State Director of the Stonewall Democrats Kelly Groves said. "And we are speaking out against the Bush agenda, which is incredibly negative to gay people."
Groves said that the Stonewall Democrats -- an LGBT activist group for the Democratic Party -- had nearly 30 volunteers and four full-time staff members at the event.
In fact, Jaime Leggett, a College junior and executive board member of the Queer Student Alliance, said that "the fact that there were so many pro-Kerry and anti-Bush signs" was the most memorable aspect of the event.
College freshman Ellen Fraint had a similar reaction.
"I thought it was really interesting to see so many people come out showing their support . ... I noticed there were so many tables either against Bush or pro-Kerry."
A crowd of no more than 20 demonstrators protested the event, but according to those near the place of protest, they were taken away by the police within 15 minutes.
At its heart, the event was still about celebrating the vibrancy in the LGBT community.
"I think everybody is always amazed with the diversity in our community," Volz said. "I think that's what everyone walks away from the OutFest with."
