On Sunday, Ottawa’s most colourful festival took over the city core. The 2011 edition of the Gay Pride festival didn’t bring out the sun but the crowd showed up.
It was a strange weekend. On Saturday, I went to Parliament Hill to see the memorial dedicated to Jack Layton. And as I was taking pictures, I noticed a huge gathering at the bottom of the Peace Tower. At first, I thought the event had to do with Layton’s funerals in Toronto that were taking place around the same time. Minutes later, the crowd started singing and praising Jesus the Lord blah blah blah.
Oh. Okay. Them again. Alright… I believe in free speech, right?
So I stuck around the memorial, a few metres away from the prayer group, desperately trying to take pictures and to block the message that was blasting in my ears. “We believe we need to restore Canada to its morally conservative roots”… “abortion kills babies”… “we want to believe Canada will follow God…”
Ugh. They gave me a headache and made me quite angry.
Anyway… and on Sunday was the Gay Pride. Let’s just say I was way more comfortable there than close to the anti-abortion evangelists group.
As a photographer, I see the Gay Pride as a great street photography opportunity. As a citizen, I see it as a reminder to the world that yes, love and relationships come in various forms—a man and a woman, two men, two women… Gay and lesbian couples raise kids, some men like to dress as women, some women like to dress as men, etc. To quote Pierre Trudeau, “the State had no business in the bedroom of consenting adults.” Don’t like gay people? Well, don’t be gay and close your eyes. You may want to skip the series of pictures below too.
The world needs Gay Pride to remember that homosexuality is neither a disease nor a choice. It’s just… love. And yet, members of the LGTB community are regularly victims of discrimination. Why? What can justify it? Homosexuality is as old as the history of the world. Nothing to be ashamed of, nothing to hide.
There are LGBT people out there in the world.
Get over it.
Wow, that’s a rather huge turnout, it seems! Buffalo’s Pride isn’t that big I think. Although I have to say I haven’t checked it out personally, as I end up being overseas every year whenever it is held. I am also glad to see that people from various slices of society participate, from the atheists, to the senior citizens!
It was a very inclusive event, which was pretty cool. I never had the chance to go in Ottawa, bad timing I guess.
Lovely! I’ve never been to one but Paris’gay parade looks pretty cool!
I’ve seen quite a few in France, I think most are in June when everybody is out. It’s always a colourful event!
I say this as a Bi-sexual citizen of the world…Love happens everywhere.
nothing to be ashamed of and as a matter of fact I think these pictures are great…while some people see debauched raunchy homosexuals( an extremely narrow view ) I see people having fun, and it makes me smile
and I think that’s the core of photography…to invoke emotions, this story is told really well through your photography, thank you
though I would like to say I fully support police brutality of drug users :P…god damn idiots ruining my property value
Thank you! I’l glad you enjoyed the pictures.
The Gay Pride is of course a carnival, where dress codes and attitudes are way more relaxed than in real life. I doubt heterosexuals will dress the same during let’s say Spring Break and Halloween as they do in normal times! 😆 It’s worth mentioning though because like you said some people see debauched people taking over the street. 🙂
Salut Zhu,
Those are fun and meaningful shots!
I prefer gestures to long strings of words but, I am OPEN.
And I am AGAINST any DISCRIMINATION.
Thanks for sharing, Zhu.
Bises.
Same here, I’m open to differences or at least I try to be. I love that the Gay Pride was a very inclusive event and I’m glad I went!
Speaking of homosexuality… a Malaysian pastor who lives in New York has just ‘married’ his lover. Because of his position as a Christian priest, criticism of him is particularly harsh.
Malaysia is still a conservative society, but I can see changes…
All society do change eventually I think. It just takes time… but even in the West, there has been some dramatic changes in the past few decades.
Hey Zhu…
Nice article and some great photos. Well done.
I hope all is well at your end.
Have a great week, ( whatever’s left of it )
Rick
Thank you!
Are you still blogging? I haven’t seen your feed updated in a long time.
I was there! I’m the lady in pink. 🙂
I emailed you if you want a copy of the picture 😉
Haha! I hear you! Proselytising groups are a nuisance, really. But on the other hand, I’m a pro-life. LOL!
The gay men usually have guts that common men dont really dare to do – like strutting their stuff on the streets for the world to see. They have the courage to don on these skimpy underwears when the usual North American men would cringe at the thought of wearing those!
I have no problem arguing with people who have different opinions, it’s the attitude I hate. My best friend in high school supported death penalty and we spent night arguing 😆
You took some great pictures there! You have a knack for capturing the essence of certain moments 🙂
Thank you! 🙂
Hi Zhu,
I disagree: Gay Pride had a reason to exist in the 70’s and even the 80’s. But today, they are not only lost the original spirit of the parade, but also have become something tasteless and vulgar (most of the times). Most gay parades, today, are a provocation and they do not help those who want to be homosexuals in peace (without partaking in those exhibitions).
Yes, homosexuals are as much as human beings as the rest of us (and for that alone, they deserve utter respect), I also agree that they should be able to adopt (thank God in many countries they can), because being straight does not automatically grant you the label of “parent of the year” (we all know what goes on in many hetero households).
Your pictures are beautiful.
Cheers
I disagree, I don’t find them vulgar and tasteless, at least not more than heterosexual Carnival or other events! Those who do not want to take part in the Gay Pride are free to do so, and I think the parade is a nice reminder (plus a chance to party!) that yes, there are gay, lesbian, transgenders etc. in all society, whether it’s accepted or not.