Kiss Off: Activists Pucker Up for Protest

Event encourages everyone to show some love

You must remember this, a kiss is just a kiss ... but for too many unfortunate lovebirds, it can turn into a frustrating example of discrimination and prejudice.

Thus ativists across the nation are determined to tell the opposition to kiss off this weekend.

Two bloggers—David Badash and David Mailloux—along with Join The Impact, a grassroots organization, are coordinating "The Great Nationwide Kiss-In" on Saturday, August 15. The event isn't just a good excuse to smooch a stranger.  It's actually an issues-based protest.

"We need to make a strong statement to everyone everywhere: kissing is not a bad thing, nor has it ever been. It's not vulgar or inappropriate. It's a sign of affection that is as old as time itself. And it's a beautiful thing that we share with our loved ones every single day," the group's Facebook website says.

Badash and Mailloux organized the event after a spate of recent PDAs drew the attention of authorities.

In June, two gay men were ejected from a restaurant in El Paso, Texas, by police after they shared a peck on the lops. One of the men said the officer told the group it was illegal for two men or two women to kiss in public.

A little more than after that in Salt Lake City, security guards detained two gay men when one kissed the other's cheek on a plaza owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They were cited for "trespassing."

If the idea of protesting the laws lip-locking crackdown meet at Cloudgate ("the Bean") in Millennium Park at 1 p.m.

Fausto Fernos at Feast of Fun even offers a few suggestions for those who plan to attend:

1. Arrive early! The good-looking ones go fast. Approach the hottie you're wanting to lock lips with, and ask them "Want to be my kissing partner?" Convince them it's for a good cause.

2. Bring some minty sugar-free gum to keep your breath fresh.

3. Dance with the one who took you. If you go with someone to a kiss-in and wind up kissing somebody else, be prepared for some drama!

Check out the entire list of funny tips at the Feast of Fun website.

Organizers are hoping to inspire smooches in over 45 cities in the United States and Canada. Here in Illinois, five separate locations will be puckering up: Carbondale, Champaign/Urbana, Chicago, Oak Park, and Normal.

Matt Bartosik, a "between blogs" blogger, doesn't kiss and tell... most of the time.

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