The second annual lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender pride parade in the south of the country is scheduled to take place in Greater Kaohsiung on Saturday, organizers said yesterday.
Hoping to maintain the momentum of last year’s success, when about 2,000 people participated, the organizers have made “Out and Out” the theme of this year’s event, to encourage more people to participate and show their support.
“We’d like to encourage not only homosexuals to walk in the parade to demand their rights are upheld, but anyone who wants to join the crowd and show their support,” said Lin Wei-feng (林瑋豐), the spokesman for the parade.
Photo: CNA
Though the Kaohsiung parade lacks the history of a similar event held annually in Taipei, organizers hope it will enable people in the city, which they consider more conservative than Taipei, to gain a better understanding of the “rainbow community.”
One of the group’s main aims this year is to push for a gender equality curriculum in elementary and junior-high schools. The appeal came in April after some parents’ groups argued that a Ministry of Education plan to teach students about sexual orientation could confuse or misguide young children.
The 3km parade will start in Birthday Park at 1:30pm and will head to downtown areas, before returning to the park at about 4pm. A warm-up forum entitled “How to make Kaohsiung a gay-friendly city” is scheduled to take place on Friday evening, organizers said.
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