HISTORY

Why a LeatherFest in Los Angeles

The fetish and leather community in Los Angeles was always an enigma to me. The leather/levi bars have been in the forefront of education, politics and recreation. These clubs combined have raised millions of dollars for HIV and AIDS non-profit organizations and other services that have bettered the lives of gay and lesbian people in Los Angeles. Despite all this, in 1993 many leatherfolk claimed a leather community did not exist here. The mainstream gay and lesbian community did not want to see, hear, or be part of anything they did not understand, most of all, fetishes or SM. Los Angeles is very unique, the range of ethnic groups, the "Old Guard" vs. the "New School", the growing visibility of women in the community, and an underground for separate hetrosexual leather community. Then you have fetish vs. leather vs. SM

We may learn from each other and have some fun at the same time? I posed this problem to a few friends, soon that circle became larger and LeatherFest Los Angeles was born. It came out of a large group of people's dedication and love to the community in which they live.

Benjamin Cable McCarthy
President: 1993-1995