Gather your inner-gay dahlings and celebrate Pride

Sunshine, sweat and muscles – oh my! Much to my delight - and the delight of 530,000 other spectators - this was the underlying theme of the 30th annual Vancouver Pride Parade. Seriously though possums, it was a grand event demonstrating and celebrating 30 years of gay/bi/lesbian/transgender rights in Vancouver, and what a celebration it was!

Never have I witnessed a more ethnically diverse event. Everyone from members of the aboriginal community to the inclusion of a Bollywood inspired float by Sher Vancouver, a social support group for GLBT Sikhs. There was also a selection of religious groups offering their support to the cause, with one sporting a fabulous Gospel singer accompanied by a 20 person ensemble, which really got the crowd going.

The Pride parade wouldn’t be complete without your typical corporate sponsors and politicians looking for the ‘gay vote’. Yet, whatever their reason for participating, it all garners positive attention to gay rights which is the objective of the parade in the first place.

OK – politics and seriousness aside, let’s move our focus onto the crowd. You have grandma and grandpa in from Cloverdale to take in the colorful floats. You have families and children. At one point, a Mariah Carey-inspired drag queen stopped to toss condoms into the crowd when a young lad in front of us said ‘he would like a sucker too’…to which the queen reached deep into her frock, pulling out an assortment of lollies for the tot. I for one was enjoying the plethora of fit, young men bopping about to a selection of electronica and Madonna…do you blame me?

One of the more powerful moments during the parade was a float displaying the Freedometer Map, a color-coded world map highlighting gay-friendly countries…and the results are quite grim. I’m happy to say Canada is listed as one of the most progressive countries on the subject, however we are only one of three, joined by Spain and South Africa. These are the only countries in the world where there are no penalties for being gay, same-sex marriage is legal and there are discrimination laws in place. As a good friend of mine put it ‘we live in a bubble of liberal thought here in Vancouver and have become complacent about the relevance of this parade and how far our world has yet to come’. Case in point.

Despite the worlds ability, or lack thereof, to adopt a more liberal approach to gay rights, it’s comforting to know that we live in city, and a country for that matter, that is open to all members of its community, regardless of color, religion or sexual preference.

Whew! I feel a group hug coming on…

Photo credits - Nella Amenta