This post was written by Hatchet staff writer Colleen Murphy.

Supporters of young lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals gathered Saturday in Dupont Circle to celebrate Youth Pride Day, promoting awareness of LGBT issues in the District.

The nonprofit Youth Pride Alliance organized the 17th annual event, and the organization’s president, Nikisha Carpenter said the day was meant to connect LGBT youth with each other and with role models.

“It’s necessary for youth to find safe space and find mentorships so they can continue to grow and express themselves,” she said.

Former National Football League player Wade Davis, who came out as gay in 2012, keynoted the event, which was sponsored by D.C. Public Schools and the Human Rights Campaign. Davis, a former Tennessee Titans player, is now the LGBT surrogate for President Barack Obama.

Attendees, many of whom were members of their schools’ Gay-Straight Alliance organizations, danced, made t-shirts and posed with friends in a photo booth.Fifteen-year-old Nathan Kay said the event offered an escape from judgment based on sexual preference.

“It’s good to be able to come somewhere where you know you don’t have to worry about other people reacting in a way that makes you feel unsafe or uncomfortable,” Kay said.

A 2012 survey conducted by the Human Rights Campaign of more than 10,000 LGBT teenagers found that 64 percent of those in high school and 54 percent of those in middle school were open about their sexual orientation, a shift from years ago when most young people came out in their 20s.

Other speakers included Christian Bass, a youth mentor at a D.C. health clinic for LGBT patients. He said he hoped the annual event gave D.C. youth the support he never experienced at a young age.

“This event is very empowering because it shows how far we’ve come,” Bass said. “We’re out in the public, and sometimes as a gay youth you don’t want that attention, but now we can do this without worrying.”