Walking down the 1100 block of Rodman Street, sweat visible through his fitted blue T-shirt, Brian Sims isn’t slowed down by the heat as he darts from doorstep to doorstep, placing fliers on porches and encouraging anyone he sees to vote. It’s the day before Philadelphia’s primaries, and Sims has election fever.
Bellowing to every passer-by that he hopes to “see you at the polls tomorrow!” the 210-pound former Bloomsburg University defensive lineman oozes machismo. He punctuates almost every sentence with a charming smile. “Beautiful lawn! Are you registered to vote for tomorrow?” he gleams at a woman who is walking into her home near the corner of 11th Street. He’s hoping she says yes and nods his head in satisfaction when she does.
Sims isn’t running for office, but the 32-year-old lawyer is making politics his business, hoping to give a fresh, young look to LGBT rights by breaking down stereotypes and false perceptions that too often stymie the movement. Sims, a self-professed “professional gay,” who gets paid to tell his coming-out story at colleges around the country, says he isn’t trying to redefine what being gay means, but contends homosexuality is “an everybody thing.”
“The rainbow flag is a symbol of the LGBT community because we are a broad community,” says Sims, the president of Equality PA—a group that fights for LGBT rights on the state level.
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We’re auctioning off the jersey he sported from the cover and donating the proceeds to the William Way Community Center, a safe community center for people in the LGBT community. Sims is also part of the WWCC’s “Homecoming Court” a new event that’s launching 8 p.m. on Saturday.
“We are thrilled to be creating a new community event that throws open the doors of the Community Center for the Saturday evening of Gay Pride Weekend,” says Chris Bartlett, the center’s executive director. “The William Way is the Center of our community, and we want to be a central part of the LGBT pride celebration too.”
Bid for the jersey and learn more about the event HERE.
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