The Gathering of the Juggalos is the greatest place on Earth
I went to my first Gathering in 2011, and I was hooked. I had been intending to go for years, but I have to admit that I was a little afraid of stepping into the middle of 10,000 strangers who seemed to come from an entirely other world. I regret not making the effort to go sooner, because I find the culture and the people absolutely fascinating, and have seen passionate self-expression that makes the regular world seem bland and lifeless by compassion.
Juggalos are sort of like American gypsies, hated and ostracized by the general public, but proud and united in their exclusion. Now they are even being profiled as a gang by the FBI, and in some cases, persecuted by law enforcement simply for displaying Juggalo related tattoos.
Nonetheless, it's a gang that I don't mind hanging out with from time to time. Even though I am often treated warily, being an obvious outsider, I have really encountered nothing but kindness and constant exhibition of joy at being alive, which is something that I find distinctly lacking in "the mainstream."
This year, I had the honor of getting press credentials for the Gathering via the good folks over at Doobious.org, so please head on over there to take a gander at the more detailed description of my last time among the Juggalos.