PRIDE EVENTS ACROSS THE WORLD

With the 40th Anniversary month of the Stonewall riots in full swing, countries across the world have celebrated their gay pride marches over the weekend. However it wasn’t all joyous celebrations, as homosexual inequality still plagues many around the globe.

In New York, hundreds of thousands of people marched along Manhattan’s fifth avenue to commemorate the city’s 1969 Stonewall Riots, the birth of the modern gay rights liberation movement.

However the state still has not legalised gay marriage, dampening the spirits of many. “We definitely had high hopes that today would be maybe the most celebratory parade I’d ever participated in and a lot of people had ever participated in. That’s clearly not the case. And that’s very, very disappointing, there’s no two ways about that,” said City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, who wanted participants to be able to celebrate the new law this year.

It was a similar situation in Dublin on Saturday, where the theme was “Pride and Prejudice”, prompting many to dress in wedding gowns and tuxes. The crowds chanted: “What do we want? Marriage. When do we want it? Now”, as they marched down the street.

The estimated audience of 12 000 were nevertheless able to celebrate the publication of the Civil Partnership Bill by the Government yesterday that will give statutory partnership rights to gay and lesbian couples, which is one step closer to same-sex marriage.

In France, the crowd was pleasantly surprised by a performance from US showbiz diva and gay icon Liza Minnelli, who wowed them with a dazzling dance and song routine. Minelli was in France to perform a concert and surprised organisers when she offered to perform during the celebrations.

While marriage and adoption rights continue to elude gays and lesbians in France, the crowd of around 200 000 managed to make the most of the vibrant procession, which included two floats blasting pop and techno music.

The Indian LGBT community had quite a bit to celebrate during the country’s second Bangalore Pride this weekend too, as the government is said to be preparing to revise a law drafted more than 100 years ago that criminalises homosexuality. The repressive law makes it a criminal offence for couples of the same gender to have sex.