It wasn't until he was at Loyola University in New Orleans in fall 2011 that Bob Gilchrist finally became comfortable with the fact that he is gay.

"I had never lived in a city where I could walk outside and not be immediately laughed at for wearing clothes that were weird," Gilchrist says. He grew up in north Jackson where he still lives. "I was able to realize that I was 100 percent gay."

Although he only recently came out to his friends and family, Gilchrist has strong views on how gays should be treated. He thinks gays are regarded as second-class citizens in areas like Mississippi where gay couples are not allowed to marry or adopt children.

To bring awareness and attention to the gay community, Gilchrist, 18, organized Fondren's March for Gay Equality, which will go from the Rainbow Natural Grocery (2807 Old Canton Road) parking lot in Fondren to the Capitol building on March 1.

"I want absolutely everyone in Mississippi to see the gay community as a strong, proud and active community of ordinary citizens who want and need equal rights," Gilchrist says. The march, he says, may inconvenience people for a brief moment to get them to think about the bigger picture.

Gilchrist's activism isn't just starting. During his sophomore year at St. Andrew's Episcopal School, he would drive around south Jackson giving out McDoubles to homeless people he encountered. He came across the Opportunity Center (845 W. Amite St., 601-949-3540), where he spends time getting to know homeless people. He strongly believes that society should not value money as much as we do.

"(Money is) really a game," Gilchrist says. "If you take it too seriously, then you don't take people seriously enough, and you lose your humanity. No one 'deserves' to be homeless just as no one 'deserves' a million dollars."

Wanting to know how it felt to live in poverty, Gilchrist lived in Johannesburg, South Africa's slums during the summer before his senior year with the Methodist program, Comeback Mission. He helped take care of abused children, and two women tried to get him to take their babies back to America with him because he cared for them so well.

Gilchrist spent his senior year of high school in Beijing. He attended Loyola for three months, where he studied opera and vocal performance. Now, he's back in Jackson.

"We are not less than perfect; we are beautiful," Gilchrist says about the gay community. "We are just ordinary citizens who want to be accepted like everyone else."

Fondren's March for Gay Equality is March 1 at 9 a.m. For more information, contact Bob Gilchrist at 601-573-1377 or [e-mail missing], or visit the group's Facebook page.