One of the highlights of Pride Week was a mass wedding of 120 lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer couples all getting legally married at the same time in the grounds of Casa Loma. The numbers: 4,000 glasses of sparkling wine, 100 floral arrangements, 100 feet of red carpet, and officiants from 12 different faiths: Catholic, Anglican, Pagan, Unitarian Universalist, Sikh, Humanist, Jewish, United, Bhuddist, Muslim, New Thought, and First Nations Elder.
Huge crowds watched the downtown Pride Parade on Sunday, with over 1200 participants from all over the world. An event like this gives a voice to those who don't have the same rights in their home countries.
I was downtown with friends to go to the Big Pride Singalong on Saturday night. A good friend sings in the Singing Out chorus and we go to all their events. The concert was pretty crazy, lots of laughs and poking fun at themselves, but room for some serious singing too. Beach balls flying around in the audience as a warm up, and the concert finished with a dance battle between Madonna songs and Lady Gaga music.... hilarious!
I guess it's quite the event, and the tower looks fantastic.
ReplyDeleteOh, what fun, Sham. I remember my early days of being out, after my divorce in 1990. I attended many a Gay Pride Parade in Atlanta, usually representing our gay-friendly United Methodist Church. Those were the years! I bet much has changed since then...and probably much has stayed the same!
ReplyDeleteThe tower is spectacular in rainbow colours.
ReplyDeleteIt was a great event. A first for Toronto 'World Pride', but it was also another first for Ontario, and Canada I believe, the OECTA "Ontario Catholic Teacher Association" for the first time every registered and walked 100 strong in support of LGBTQ students, staff and community, truly history making.
ReplyDeleteOecta took a lot of pressure from ring wing fundamentalists over this, but stood strong for what is truly catholic values of support, caring, compassion and showing love for the most marginalized people in society today. It should be noted that in Ontario catholic teachers are the only people that can still be discriminated against legally for being LGBTQ. Kathleen Wynn we urge you to act on this!
It sounds like a Glorious Celebration! It's great that times have changed in some places---and in a BIG way, their in Canada! One would hope that someday all of this will just be taken for granted---probably not in my lifetime, but, it is on it's way....! Now,if only some of our states could become more lovoigly open minded, that would be Fantastic!
ReplyDeleteThe tower looks amazing, you must have had so much fun! You can imagine san francisco had quite a prideful week as well. It was our 44th pride parade on sunday. Unfortunately I missed it, we were at the hideaway.
ReplyDeleteHappy Canada Day, Shammie!
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun time. Canada's Pride makes one proud to be Canadian, eh? Happy Canada D'eh, Shammie.
ReplyDeleteSounds wonderfully enlightened! Is it just me or is the rest of the world slowly sliding back into the Middle Ages?
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