Gerard Anderson stood on the sidewalk with their mother, waiting for the parade’s floats to travel down Kirkpatrick Street. The two wore glasses, the lenses covered with the rainbow colors of the LGBT pride flag.

“It’s the first time I’ve ever been to a big pride festival since I came out to my mom,” they said.

Attending the CNY Pride parade as an LGBT youth — Anderson identifies as pansexual, nonbinary and transgender —  meant a lot to them, Anderson said with teary eyes. They took a sharp breath.

Caped in rainbow flags and dressed in drag, with glitter adorning beards and cheekbones, thousands of LGBT community members and allies attended the CNY Pride parade Saturday in downtown Syracuse.

The month of June, known as Pride Month, is dedicated to celebrating and honoring the history of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender, or LGBT, community. Festivals and parades take place around the world during June in support of LGBT rights.

Karon Temple said he wanted to attend the celebration because gay pride needs to be talked about.

“People need to accept it, people need to just learn that love is love, regardless,” Temple said.

This year’s Pride celebrations commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots, considered the beginning of the LGBT rights movement. Police in New York City raided the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in the city’s Greenwich Village, early in the morning on June 28, 1969. Thirteen people were arrested.

At a time when sexuality and gender expression was criminalized and policed, gay bars acted as safe havens for LGBT individuals of all ages. Police raids were common at these establishments, but the raid at Stonewall marked a breaking point. Hundreds of patrons fought police outside the bar, with riots and protests erupting in the six days following the raid.

This year’s Pride celebrations commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots, a landmark event in LGBT history. Emma Folts | Asst. News Editor

Damien Dine has attended Pride festivals every year since he was 15 years old. The fifty years since the events at Stonewall represent a progression of LGBT rights, he said.

“Back then we had nothing, and now we’re building up towards hopefully everything,” Dine said.

A truck decorated with Stonewall’s exterior signage and brick facade drove by, blasting Madonna’s song “Vogue” as people cheered.

Syracuse University, SUNY-ESF and SUNY Upstate Medical University community members participated in the parade, walking behind a banner displaying the name of SU’s LGBT Resource Center. Jorge Castillo, the assistant director of the Resource Center, was present at the parade.

khristian kemp-delisser, the executive director of the Resource Center, encouraged higher education professionals to participate in the parade in an email sent to their colleagues in May.

The Assault City Roller Derby skated through the crowd with rainbow bandanas tied around their necks. Dinosaur Bar-B-Que, University United Methodist Church and Excellus BlueCross BlueShield also marched in support of LGBT rights.

Dana Balter, who recently announced her second campaign for New York’s 24th congressional district, was one of the first marchers to pass by the crowd. An aide passed out campaign pins along the way.

khristian kemp-delisser (middle) encouraged higher education professional to participate in this year’s CNY Pride. Emma Folts | Asst. News Editor

A small group of anti-LGBT protesters stood at the end of the parade’s route, speaking into bullhorns and holding signs with biblical verses cited at the bottom. The event’s marchers and attendees surrounded and silenced the protesters, their message becoming a faint murmur as the crowd repeatedly chanted “gay is happy.” One person in the crowd raised a rainbow fan in front of the sign, while others danced and took photos.

Across from the protesters stood Sasha Brady.

“Honestly, if God created everybody, he should be able to love everybody,” she said.

This was the first pride parade she’s attended. Brady, who is bisexual, said she wanted to express that everyone should love whoever they want. She said she accepts everybody as they are, and that no one is a “mess-up.”

Mothers and pastors wore shirts advertising free hugs. Young children and toddlers waved pride flags. Couples embraced in the shade and held hands as they marched. People who attend Pride can find new friends and a new family, Brady said.

“Everyone’s special and unique, it doesn’t matter if you’re gay, bi, trans, whatever,” Brady said. “Everybody will love them forever and always.”

Published on June 22, 2019 at 6:34 pm

Contact Emma: esfolts@syr.edu