When Lauren Ash and her friends heard that Mayor Rob Ford invited everyone in Toronto to his mother’s Etobicoke home for a barbecue, they immediately decided they would attend.

Ash saw the open invitation as a good opportunity for members of the LGBT community to meet the mayor and talk to him about issues in their community.

“He’s been too busy to attend our events, so why not bring the event to him?” Ash said.

“We don’t want anyone to cause any trouble. We want to be respectful. This is his private property… we just want to show up as invited guests,” Ash said.

Ford missed this year’s Pride parade, officially to go to his family cottage, an annual tradition.

The mayor invited the “whole city” to his annual Ford Fest barbecue during a radio interview with Newstalk1010 on Tuesday.

Ford told the radio audience the Sept. 7 event at Diane Ford’s Weston Wood Rd. home will be “a great time,” with hot dogs, hamburgers, beer, pop and even pony rides for kids.

Ash and her friends created a Facebook event to get other people on board with their plan.

A few hours after its creation, more than 3,500 people had been invited to a “Backyard Pride Parade at Rob Ford’s.”

“Bring your Pride in whatever form you like and let’s show Rob what our community is all about! Above all, let’s keep this peaceful, fun, and political,” the event’s description says.

Ash and fellow organizer Leigh Williams said the group hasn’t figured out the logistics yet. They may meet and walk to the Ford house together or arrive in a big pink bus.

“We just want to take part in the diversity the Fords are trying to create at this event and represent our community,” Williams said.

When asked how many people he can fit in the backyard, Ford told Newstalk1010 the event draws “close to 5,000 people,” though not all at once.

Last year, hundreds of people, mostly Ford supporters, showed up to the event, which featured a speech from the mayor, an appearance by Progressive Conservative leader Tim Hudak and fireworks at the end of the night.

The organizers aren’t sure how many of the thousands of Facebook invitees will actually show up. But they say they’re happy with a low or high turnout, so long as they’re represented.

“I actually thought it was quite the gesture to invite all of the residents of Toronto to his home,” Williams said.

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