Mexico kissing ban gets locals hot and bothered

PDA, (public displays of affection) are a way of life in many countries. Young lovers, often caught by the watchful eye of parents at home, use shared public spaces like parks, mass transportation and monuments to gain a degree of “public anonymity” and exchange a few amorous pleasantries.

In most countries, this behavior is taken for granted – it’s simply a way of life to make out with your lover on a train because there’s just nowhere else to do it. But in a number cities around the world, public kissing is in danger. In addition to a recent smooching ban at the train station in Cheshire, UK, the city of Guanajuato Mexico has had enough. This past January, Guanajuato’s city council, led by the socially conservative National Action Party, updated the city code of public behavior. The code targeted not only jaywalking and “offensive language” but something Guanajuato’s mayor, Eduardo Romero Hicks, has described as “Olympic fondling.” One can only imagine what he had in mind. Many Guanajuato residents, upon hearing of the ban, took it as an attack on all public displays of affection, including kissing, and the outrage began to grow.

Needless to say, Guanajuato’s many lip-lockers and “Olympian fondlers” were immediately up in arms (and lips) over the new proclamation, going so far as to stage a massive “kiss-in” at the city’s main plaza on Valentine’s Day and post satirical videos about the ban on YouTube. It didn’t take long before the city council caved, shelving the new ordinance for “further review.” I guess it just goes to show you that when it comes to kissing in public places, love knows no bounds…