In conjunction with the Great National Kiss-In happening in 50 U.S. cities, local marriage equality and pro-labor organizations staged a Kiss-In at the Manchester Grand Hyatt on Saturday, Aug. 15.

“The reason we are here is to have a Kiss-In, to celebrate the right to kiss, the right to express love, the right to express our feelings and emotions with each other and not be afraid, and that’s why we’re here,” said Wendy Sue Biegeleisen, member of San Diego Alliance for Marriage Equality (SAME), in front of 30 to 40 people outside the north west end of the hotel.

Bloggers David Badash and David Mailloux coordinated the national Kiss-In in response to several incidents in San Antonio and El Paso, Texas and Salt Lake City, Utah, where police had harassed and/or detained gay and lesbian couples for kissing in public.

“We need to make a strong statement to everyone, everywhere: Kissing is not a bad thing; nor has it ever been,” Badash and Mailloux stated on their Facebook page. “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.”

SAME, Join the Impact and Sleep with the Right People, an alliance between GLBT people and labor union UNITE HERE, staged the Kiss-In at the Manchester Hyatt to raise awareness of their continued boycott of the hotel. The groups have been boycotting the hotel for more than a year because of hotel owner Doug Manchester’s donation of $125,000 to the Yes on 8 Campaign and allegations that hotel workers are being overworked and prevented from unionizing.

“Queer people are workers. We’ve been working in this hotel right here. Manchester earns his profits from the hard work of LGBT people that work here in this hotel. And he uses this money to help change the California constitution to discriminate against us,” said SAME member Michael Anderson. “Today, we will stand here. We will kiss here in solidarity with all others who are in the struggle for peace, for equality and for the end of exploitation of all people.”

Participants also protested “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT), the policy preventing gays and lesbians from openly serving in the military.

“Members of the armed forces can’t kiss the people they love. Can’t express how they feel, can’t share how they feel, and must be in the closet, and that’s not OK,” Biegeleisen said.

Ben Cartwright, event emcee, talked about how DADT affects him and his partner’s, who serves in the military, relationship.

“When he flies back in or sails back into the base or the port and all the families are there, waving and kissing, I can’t kiss him. I can’t be myself. We have to walk to the car, drive 10 miles away [before we can] kiss or hug or show any form of affection,” Cartwright said.

Between the speakers sharing their experiences and thoughts on marriage equality, DADT and Doug Manchester, participants shared kisses and chanted.

SAME member Jose Medina sang a song he had written based on the rhyme of a U.S. Marine Corps hymn.

“You’ll love these lyrics. You’ll love the irony,” Medina said.

“Gay people are U.S. citizens, matrimony is our right. This is our country’s call to battle fighting for this worthy cause. Straight sisters and brothers hear our case. Fear and hatred have no place. All together we shall join this cause. There’s no time; we cannot pause. Gay and straight march on toward victory, equal marriage, you and me.”

Couples, including Camille Davidson and Maureen Steiner, talked about their love for one another throughout the event.

“We actually only met two and a half years ago, and we pretty much hit it off right away, and then we wanted to get married, and then we thought, ‘Well we’re not in no hurry,’ until we caught the wind of what was happening,” Steiner, who married Davidson last November, said.

The Kiss-In ended with about 10 couples walking into the hotel’s main lobby, where they kissed for several minutes. Hotel management called the police, but once they arrived, organizers were already outside and clearing the area of their personal belongings.