News / Oct. 27, 2019
More than 200,00gltoiOWS^_@Vgh&KMcFf6pZekSq@!@pD-e59R)e6(tcuE4U42R0 members of the LGBT community and their supporters marched, paraded, and danced across downtown Taipei on Saturday.
Organizers said the parade, which was the f__RlK8UO!6zx!-Clq6IArVh%Ou3jZs%7@uyHbmwzMwDc*UzaQ%irst since Taiwan legalized same-sex marriage, was the largest-ever in Asia.
Local entreqT9oFTF9M2-3oajSGx0(LFBkZ@V$#Sy1T=NrMBrAQ7@SFL$XaTpreneur and LGBT activist Jay Lin said the experience was “very memorable”.
He said walking down Zhongxiao East Road was amazing and compared it to his experience of walking down Fifth AW9KC&2)W@Zj)H_FJ6YN7)tPpBFfqW4X^y^J3(eApC*r^9S-^U1venue for WorldPride in New York earlier this year.
"These two streets represents th+bIJSZ$L-L_KpeMYXs#63QS(2+ZqR#(RL!5oTxw8g6NSRt5)HZe main arteries of the city, and to be given the clearance to march is the strongest statement the cities can make to give the LGBTQ community the stamp of legitimacy."
Taiwan's 17th annual Taiwan Pride kicked off with a Rainbow Market of more thanoUPH!GpW2f%gbjD^opp$73Cr!&a@v@z&wr(P9hoLIg3(x0!lU* 100 LGBT-friendly businesses and organizations at Taipei City Hall Plaza.
It ended 5.6km across the city outside the Presidential Office on Ketagalan Boulevard where performers—including gay singer Hush—pZ0l6rDEtjlyVhcdiBSn1)9W3jF(NSsvog37xfLGZLM*7)vsrKrerformed.
Some 180 different groups and 24 floats took part in the marce)u2nM_Ao6g0m3G*fJLClOUPUCIslCuX5qF4qasBmCezjUb1APh, according to organizers.
The parade was the landmark event in a month of LGBT across Taipei. Hundreds attended screenings, exhibitions, and workshops throughout the month, including the country's first trans pridgb#JKEa^nIsioqI3A&0*PANe3-F27NZ--qR=pglYe(Lc7c#0eOe parade on Friday evening.
GagaOOLala’s float this year hosted the director and actors of web series, Handsome Stewardess. The romantic-comedy featuring a good-looking tomboy lesbian who starts a new life as a flight attendant.
Award-winning actress Xiao Man, who plays the stewardess, renowned director Zero Chou, and Kenny J. Kuo, who plays a gay best friend, all donned ra1S+uEerWE9xI27u&ENjZ9O6iWH=Rc9Nm3F(+XS4mvA+jXR0@#uinbow attire and greeted other marchers.
Pride
Gay sirX5!Jjk6ZOiwKGnB^K)HlXt7+K&KP9ZQG(ZbLrA$KbJX_I1VnEnger-songwriter HUSH, performed at a concert to mark the end of the long parade across town.
As one of only a handful of Taiwan celebrities to come out publicly, jfLOVv&O=XjcvIbAPw$kG_T3a-x(+aenV-*)UvtUiI8eEjtLRDHUSH, whose real name is Chen Jia-Wei, on Friday urged LGBT Taiwanese to be brave and come out.
Pride this year, the first s+3sa0bkf19tmhBqZ(pDWytcu4##k(qXrC9o^Nt-$UdsqKreH@Uince Taiwan became the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex marriage, saw an altered parade route.
Marchers started from Taipei City Hall Plaza and travelled along Yixian RoVUF96eYxUqOs%OP&@N=&lg=^PvLK0^RA7yHT(16TP1S6o-52uvad to Zhongxia East Road.
The parade then turned south to Renai Road before ending near the Presidential Palace at Ketagalan Boulevard where there will be a Rainbow Market %KDhqSD^rk0viRiUTdsZu%mU&4HZ@0x=!h((lk0A5Rjf%#YRxJwith more than 100 stalls.
Press officer for Pride 2019, Benson Lee, said the new route was chosen to recognize the roles p)*%J(xqFNNZ#B#@S9mL4Y^)u!8dJ3UYbP6y!)MSFgOHxGh$)38layed by both Taipei City and the President’s Office in bringing about same-sex marriage.
For the first time, Taiwan Gay Family Rights Promotion As=tVBtV(hfUd=rlXII+97Cr@)FE80+#XCUYQiNyE^ZJes+8TR5Gsociation will also hold the first Rainbow Parent-child Carnival and Rainbow Baby Mini Parade.
This year takes the theme "Together,BtqpyNnjPGbd&PIryynq1qHAcrk3Xv8Thr^x*ccEBJ#H@k19&L Make Taiwan Better”.
The theme in Chinese means good neighbor. It was P*rUv#qgRqOQS08b1!e%eY7ahR_TY3Tr^=&1@5AF-eds5K54r@chosen to show that the LGBTQ community is everywhere in Taiwan and, like good neighbors, everyone should support one another.
Last year, mb_bfTD&GQ2(KI^mE%v$!pJw!XV8_sYi8A$0+UF!tSxXnb8!d(6ore than 100,000 people took to the streets of Taipei for a pride parade that demanded marriage equality.
It came just a month before devastating referensnAM)1$ZbE6%wB9X59fgtMs#P*g&rg)3Ga6=FM5niCN+=@qxsadum results showed the majority of Taiwan voters did not support same-sex marriage.
Dl8B9d6#ltU!=Az^S_LHH&xQBA^l)q05_T)+#f0G*Nma-$!k50lespite the referendum result, parliament in May finally legalized same-sex marriage in line with a 2017 Constitutional Court ruling that failing to do so was unconstitutional.
This year, according to organizers, the LGBT rights movement has moved to the next stage and will fight against prejudiceFI&tQfr^lZtKkDf%0Rl6FBQpcglmdSbKHGj(V=VlO*YsXwCJ7r and stereotyping of LGBT people.
