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LOCAL News :: Gender & Sexuality

Pro-Gay Forces Protest vs Anti-Gay Bigots Invading Halsted Street

Pro-gay counter-protesters outnumbered anti-gay forces many times over Saturday night on Halsted Street –- the heart of Chicago's disproportionately gay "Boystown" neighborhood and the site of many gay-oriented businesses.
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01. Pro-gay demonstrators.jpg


The Illinois Family Institute, an anti-gay outfit which recently led a failed effort to get an anti-gay advisory referendum on Illinois's ballot this fall, used the occasion of the Gay Games to protest against Steamworks, a gay bathhouse in the 3200 block of North Halsted Street.

Vastly outnumbered and given the cold shoulder by most gay and straight passersby, the anti-gay bigots wound up their protest after just 1-1/2 hours -- far earlier than planned. Originally the bigots told police they would end their 5:30 PM protest at midnight -– we told police we'd end our pro-gay counter-protest when the bigots repented (alas, they didn't repent, but we outlasted them anyway).

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04. Gay couple offers bigot a condom.jpg
The bigots were passing out anti-gay flyers. Here a gay couple repays the favor by offering one of the bigots a condom.


Even a group of Londoners in the for the Games got into the act.

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In addition to the Gay Liberation Network, the Chicago Coalition of Welcoming Churches brought out many of the pro-gay demonstrators.

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Rev. Greg Dell of Broadway United Methodist Church.

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