If you couldn't be there, here's the Auckland Pride Parade through the eyes of our reporters.
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A glorious summer's day and the crowds
are lining inner-city Ponsonby Road, initially on the shady side but
eventually the sun-scorched eastern side too.
The
ribbon-cutting ceremony carries a frisson of history when one of the
ribbon-cutters is Fran Wilde who, as a young MP thirty years ago
went in to bat for gays for whom it was illegal to have intimacy. Her
contribution to the freedom so many take for granted now should never
be forgotten. Unfortunately the gravity of her appearance is
sabotaged by the organisers who seem to have given her a pair of
scissors you couldn't cut through tissue paper with. The winner with
the fastest shears was deputy mayor Penny Hulse.
Right from
the start the parade, which kicked off earlier than last year, seems
more colourful than last year. A lot of this is due to balloons.
Balloons, balloons everywhere. But there's more primary colour and
vivacity. It soon becomes obvious there's more noise too. The
lighting budgets of last year have been replaced by sound system
budgets. Biiiiig sound systems.
The Dykes on Bikes roar off
followed by the the 30 Years Proud float which gets off to a shaky
start when their crew's individually mounted letter placards spell
nothing recognisable or pronounceable. But they get it sorted and lead
the parade down the street. A Fairfax reporter/photographer asks a
GayNZ.com reporter for confirmation of what the Homosexual Law Reform
Bill was called and "if it made it not illegal any more."
Good grief!
From then on it's a bold, bright, noisy collage of
images and assaults on the senses. The comically outsized artwork
bras worn by the Charlotte Museum folk. "I've never had boobs
this big before!" calls out Miriam Saphira. "Neither have
I!" responds your gay male reporter, quite truthfully.
The NZ Prostitutes
Collective entry sports a placard saying "Jesus Loves Hookers".
Tell that to the man with the religious placard. He reckons "God
loves us all but he doesn't like sin and ultimately this parade is
all about sin." He seems to be quite enjoying it. The NZPC float
also has an elderly Marilyn Monroe shuffling along too. Deliciously
subversive.
Next up is Coca Cola, big and loud and young with
athletic acrobatic chaps and just like their aspirational TV ads
except live and on wheels. They seem to have their own media team
capturing every energetic moment.
Speaking of media, there are
cameras, reporters, videographers and microphones everywhere.
The
Auckland Unitarian Church following in Coke's wake is a vision in
restrained dignity. The LYC superheroes float is kinda cool but a
serious struggle for the folk wrangling the huge, long rainbow flag
cape away from traffic islands, snaggy pointy signs and the
like.
The Outline national phone counselling service did
themselves up as drag rollercoaster riders, miming a wide-mouthed
terror ride as their soundtrack screamed hysterically. "Because
life's a rollercoaster and sometimes we need to give someone a
call."
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Clearly the temerity with which the previous
high-ups approached the very idea of publicly associating with
parading homos has been consigned to the trash-heap of history.
Part two of our summary of the parade will be published later today!
