BY ALEX HO

In print | October 11, 2007

This past Sunday, Philly’s Outfest took place in Philadelphia’s friendly gayborhood in Center City just four blocks south of City Hall. Streets were sectioned off for the massive crowds to wander through the festival’s myriad of activities and attractions, not least of these being a big main-stage with acts that ranged from show tunes, like When You Got It, Flaunt It and oddly a Lizza Minnelli impression of New York, New York, to hip-hop and rap from the Juan Lords. Meanwhile, some hardcore voguing went down in the dance area with DJ Maria V, who sweetly mixed Rihanna’s Umbrella. Some things I didn’t expect to see were an Orbitron that got to spin willing festival-goers silly and a hoedown, courtesy of Independence Squares, Philadelphia’s LGBT square dance club.

Every organization under the sun, even the Liberty Gay Rodeo Association, had a table set up at Outfest. Sexual health groups were on call to spread awareness and freebies like flavored condoms and a new KY mist spray. Plenty of big name sponsors were at the event, like Miller Lite and Absolut Vodka, who gave out ice-cold drafts and doormats with rainbow-colored Absolut bottles curiously reading Absolut First. One of the tablers explained to me that Absolut Vodka was one of the first companies of its kind to embrace the gay community.

And what is an Outfest without its loudspeaker-wielding condemners? Fortunately, anti-gay preachers were few and far between. They were also cleverly retorted by a few people who parodied their protest by holding up signs with supposed edicts from the Bible like, It is acceptable for man to have sex with his slave.

For this reporter, the high point of going to Outfest was just seeing the sheer number of people at the event. Perhaps this has to do with being cooped up at Swarthmore for so long, but the sight of such a huge gathering gave me quite a rush, particularly when Beyonce singing Listen blasted through the streets and had countless people lip-synching in unison and countless couples sharing a tender moment.

It’s no wonder that the nation’s biggest Coming Out Day celebration takes place on the streets of the gayborhood. Philadelphia has quite the progressive queer history, going far beyond the kowtowing of Jonathan Demme’s benign 1993 movie. Gay rights demonstrations were held in front of Independence Hall four years before Stonewall.

The gayborhood is chock full of businesses that support the queer community, from Giovanni’s Room, the nation’s oldest gay and lesbian bookstore named after a landmark 50s novel, to Spruce St. DVD and Video. For advocacy and community support, the William Way Community Center and the Attic Youth Center are in the area. As for nightlife, the gayborhood has a bevy of choices, the most famous being Woody’s and Sisters. Check out www.phillypride.org for more information.

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