In late January, we walked around Panama City streets jammed with young Catholics while wearing rainbow sashes and buttons, and carrying a sign that read “Faithful Catholics committed to full equality for LGBTQI persons.”
We were a delegation from Equally Blessed, a coalition of three organizations committed to LGBTQI justice in the Catholic Church: DignityUSA, New Ways Ministry, and Call to Action. We were attending World Youth Day, a gathering of more than 500,000 Catholics — between the ages of 18 and 35 — to celebrate their faith through prayer services, teachings, and fiestas. We were there for two reasons: to raise awareness that there are folx who identify as both LGBTQI and Catholic; and to insist on full acceptance of the LGBTQI community into our Church.
