it’s the great gay holiday! And we’re here to tell you all about how the queers made Halloween the second most popular holiday in the States. For nearly a century, gays from all walks of life have found freedom in the masquerade of All Hallows Eve. Beneath the glow of the October night sky LGBTQ partygoers enjoyed an uncommon tolerance. We take you on that journey of evolution from Philadelphia to San Francisco to New York City. So hit that download and learn the history of our most important holiday. Today we’re back to celebrate the BIGGEST holiday in the queer world. A revered and honored tradition that dates back nearly a century. The “great gay holiday” as poet Judy Grahn once said referring of course to Halloween. We hope of course that you all have laid out your stockings and makeup and hatchets and best blood soaked nightgowns. And perhaps even drawn some inspiration from our episodes this past month. Whatever your weekend plans we hope they are devilishly delicious and stupendously gay. But before you don that crown or mask, take a moment to enjoy the history of how our people made Halloween the second most popular holiday in America. Rivaled only by Christmas – and who’s to say we don’t take the her first place spot next? Halloween was originally a blend of the ancient Celtic tradition Samhain, and Roman holiday Feralia. Two separate cultural celebrations of the ancestors which reverenced the dead. The Romans also added the celebration of the Goddess Pomona – who represented fruits and trees – and thus we still have the various fruit aspects incorporated throughout fall and Halloween. As with practically every holiday in history, the holiday was used as a tool of unity by the Romans over the newly conquered Celts. As the centuries passed on the traditions and meanings behind the holiday evolved. By the eighth century Pope Gregory III declared November 1st All Saints Day. Which turned the October 31st celebrations of Samhain and Feralia into the newly named All Hallows Eve.  As time wore on, most of the Christian traditions and celebrations of Halloween began to fade turning instead into a day of mischievousness and pranks. And for that reason along with the superstition surrounding the ancient celebration, Halloween was virtually banned in the newly colonized American country. The Puritans would have none of this celtic devil’s holiday and certainly did not want the Catholic version of the celebration. For the first 200 years of white settlers invasion of America, All Hallow’s Eve was relatively dormant. Then in the mid 1800’s America saw an uptick in Irish immigrants due to the Potato famine devastating their homeland. The deep catholic and Celtic roots of the country had made it one of the few places that still practiced All Hallows Eve. Missing their homeland and seeking comfort in their traditions Irish communities began to celebrate Halloween. The parties were a mix of European and Celtic influences. Masks were worn as part of an ancient Celt tradition of warding off ghosts. The Celts believed that spirits returned on All Hallow’s Eve to claim the souls of the living – but the masks confused the deadly spirits. During the parties cakes were passed out as part of an old English tradition. Stemming from the similar British celebration of All Souls Day; when the rich would walk through the streets passing out cakes to the poor in exchange for the prayers of the poor for the wealthy families ancestors.  The fun and extravagance of the Irish celebrations pushed the holiday into the public eye and drew the attention of their non-Irish neighbors. However, the stigma of a Satanic holiday still loomed and for some time Protestant communities remained resistant to the growing fad. But soon a national campaign to change the misguided notions of Halloween emerged and even the most rigid Christians felt obliged to fall in line.