A crowd of 20 to 30 people gathered outside the Arch on Saturday afternoon. Participants in purple shirts reading “Kiss at 2 under the Arch” attempted to recruit shoppers and passersby.

When the clock reached the appropriate time, students, friends, associates and couples hugged and kissed to show solidarity for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) couples.

They had gathered for “The Great National Kiss-In,” a demonstration bloggers David Badash and David Mailloux created to show that “any person anywhere should be able to kiss whomever they want, whenever they want,” according to an advertisement for the event.

During the past year, same-sex couples were detained in El Paso, Texas and Salt Lake City, Utah. The couple in El Paso was arrested based on a seldom-enforced law against homosexual behavior. The arrest in Utah occurred in front of a Mormon church when a kissing couple refused to leave at a security guard’s request, for what he called “inappropriate behavior.”

Badash and Mailloux sent out an Internet call for local citizens across the U.S. to gather in public areas with partners, friends, families and acquaintances. At 2 p.m. participants kissed or hugged to show they believed public displays of affection should not be a violation of the law.

“For anybody who read those stories, it’s easy to see why we need to do that,” said Josh Barnett, creator and editor of GayInAthens.com.

“Athens is a pretty liberal place,” he said. “Most of my gay friends are out and they’re fine with going out in Athens and being out, but there are still plenty of people that are afraid to come out of the closet and go out in public, and we need to show that two men or two women kissing in public is OK and acceptable and becoming pretty normal.”

Deb Chasteen, administrative associate in the University’s anthropology department, decided to host a “Kiss-In” in Athens because she saw the event “as an affirmation of a right we all share, not as a protest.”

“I’ve always wanted everyone to experience the warmth and love that I’ve felt coming from passersby as I prepared for my wedding, as I ran up and kissed my husband at an airport, [and when] we hold hands in the park,” Chasteen said. “Love is too precious not to celebrate wherever it’s found,” she said. “Yet some people are met with hatred, disgust or danger just for sharing joy.”

Corey Johnson, associate professor of counseling and human development services, said he attended because he thought it was important to be visible as a gay faculty member.

“One way we can do that is by gathering at the Arch and showing there are gay and lesbian faculty members at the University and to support our gay and lesbian students.”

Some participants brought guests to aid the event. Jessie Fly, a graduate student working toward her doctorate in anthropology, brought family members who were visiting in Athens.

“I like to support events such as this one and my sisters are in town. What better time to come?” Fly said.

Adrian Childs, associate professor of music theory and composition, said he participated because it was important to “live the world you wanted.”

“The only way we get to live in a world where all couples get to show affection is to live in a world where all couples show appropriate affection,” he said.