Luke Skywalker
Super Moderator
{vb:raw ozzmodz_postquote}:
Adira Elham, of New Port Richey, Fla., practiced with her fan veils before the St. Pete Pride Night Parade in St. Petersburg on June 27, 2015. The Tampa Bay area's 13th parade drew a record 250,000 people.(Photo: Monica Herndon, Tampa Bay Times/ AP)
Historic. Emotional. Magical. Epic.
Those were of some of the superlatives offered up as several million revelers nationwide prepared to turn out Sunday for gay pride parades and marches supercharged by the historic Supreme Court ruling extending marriage rights to same-sex couples.
"It's going to be an epic weekend," David Studinski, who directs the New York City Pride March, told the Associated Press. "I actually just wrote on Twitter that this is the most historic Pride march since the first."
The rainbow colors were emblazoned on leis, flags, buttons, bouquets of balloons and scores of umbrellas as thousands of revelers gathered on an overcast, drizzly morning in Manhattan for the parade, which will travel south on Fifth Avenue from Midtown to Greenwich village.
Grand marshals include the actors Ian McKellen and Derek Jacobi, and Kasha Jacqueline Nabagesera, a leader of the gay rights movement in Uganda.
Around 2 million people were anticipated to be on hand.
Barry Holt, a 43-year-old nurse from Raleigh, N.C., had come to New York to celebrate his birthday.
"So now I have two things to celebrate" he said, referring to the landmark Supreme Court decision.
That decision made participating in this year's parades all the more poignant, he said.
"I never thought I would see something like this" he said of the decision. "So to be here just makes it more special." He was dressed in an elaborate clerical costume, with makeup and inch-long false eyelashes. But his fanciful appearance was designed to make a serious point.
"If I can come out looking like this you can be whoever you want to be," he said, "It's about living your life as joyful as you can."
On Friday he participated in a March to the Stonewall Inn, where a raid on patrons sparked the gay rights movement. "It was very moving walking and thinking of all the people who came before," he said.
Still, while he has been in a relationship for 15 years, he is not necessarily rushing to the altar.
"I am not necessarily going to run out and do it," he said. But "I'm glad that I can."
One prominent city official used the occasion to take the plunge.
Loree Sutton, a retired Army brigadier general who is commissioner of the Mayor's Office of Veterans' Affairs, proposed to her partner.
Carina Ramirez, a 21-year-old student who lives in the Bronx, has been to other gay pride parades, but none matched this moment.
"It does feel different," she said. "I feel people are going to go harder today because of the decision, even if it's raining."
When the Supreme Court's ruling was announced, she said, "I started crying, because this is something people have been fighting for for a long time."
Sunday, she and her girlfriend, Gazhir Dominguez, wore Planned Parenthood shirts that read "Love is love no matter what."
"Of course I want to get married someday," Ramirez said.
Will Kenny, a student at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, was enjoying the parade but emphasized that the struggle for equality is far from over.
"It's a party, and it's fun, but it isn't the end," said Kenny, 21.
"I think the Supreme Court decision was important but it's a small part of what's important." he said. "There's so much violence and employment discrimination, especially against (transgendered) and people of color. That has to be the main thing from now on."
In Chicago, which was hosting its 46th annual parade, three couples exchanged vows on a float.
The Thompson Hotels chain sponsored a contest, picking three same-sex couples from the Chicago to say their "I dos" while floating through the city's North Side. The couples also won a four-day honeymoon at one of its properties.
Even before Friday's court ruling, the city had been anticipating huge crowds for the parade — one of the nation's biggest and most raucous celebrations. Parade organizers paid for 90 off-duty Chicago Police officers to provide extra security during the march, which cuts through the city's Boystown area, a historic gay enclave on the city's North Side.
City officials announced before the parade, which was expected to draw more than 1 million participants, that police would aggressively enforce the city's prohibition on public consumption of alcohol — a violation that comes with a $1,000 fine.
10NEWS
250,00 attend St. Pete Pride Parade
The court's historic ruling appeared to add to the celebratory mood, and inspired some newcomers to the parade.
Geoffrey Witter, 45, of Warrenville, Ill., said he had never been to a Pride parade before, but decided this would be his year.
"I burst out crying when I heard the court's decision," said Witter, who came out when he was 18. "This is important, but it marks a change in the fight. We are going to have to continue to grow and fight on issues that the marriage decision doesn't address."
"This is a biggie but there so many other issues that still to be fought on as well," added John Gammon, 52, of Lisle, Ill. "There are still some states where you can you lose your job, because of your sexual orientation."
Evan Sale, 23, of Elgin, Ill., who painted "I love u" on his chest in rainbow colors, said that he's spent the two days since the court's ruling celebrating. Sale said that while there's been much progress, the ultimate goal is for society to see same-sex marriage to come to see marriage as unremarkable as heterosexual unions.
"Going forward, we need to make this just a normal thing, where people don't see this as weird or particularly special," Sale said.
KING5
Seattle Pride participants among a generation of change
Out West, an estimated 1 million people were expected at San Francisco's 45th annual parade.
"I just think it's going to be magical this year," said Gary Virginia, San Francisco Pride board president.
The parade, which travels up Market Street and ends at the Civic Center. will feature a record 240 groups and more than 30 floats. The theme, set long before the court's ruling Friday, is "Equality Without Exception."
The parade's grand marshal is Rick Welts, president of the NBA champion Golden State Warriors. Speakers include Jim Obergefell, the named plaintiff in the landmark same-sex lawsuit decided by the high court, and Alicia Garza, co-founder of Black Lives Matter.
Parades are also being held in Houston, Minneapolis and Seattle. Record crowds were expected in all three cities.
Contributing: Michael Winter, USA TODAY
Powered By WizardRSS.com | Full Text RSS Feed