GAY PRIDE MONTREAL 2011: IT’S GOOD TO BE GAY

GAY PRIDE MONTREAL 2011: IT’S GOOD TO BE GAY

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Fierté Montreal Pride proved yet again that there are more than just 7 colours in the rainbow. We came out in all shapes and sizes, all colours and genders, all young and old. It was a weekend to celebrate diversity, love, peace, and be proud of who we are and how far we’ve come…

Fierte Montreal Pride 2011 was like a carnival of fun and acceptance. People came out in herds to support the community, educated themselves of prevalent issues, and just be really gay together. Even though both Saturday and Sunday had called for rain, the weather held out for the main events. Montreal was just bursting with pride and it’s such an awe-inspiring sight to see the village crawl with every walk of life, and see the parade route lined with people looking for a show.

Community Day: This has long been my favourite day. It was a chance for community organizations and corporations to show what they offer to the LGBT community. The amount of activities, clubs and charities in Montreal is really staggering, and it takes a day like community day to really wrap your head around them all and get involved!

The Parade: No matter how big or how small each float was, they all left an impact on the crowd. From the Bieber look-a-like in a Chariot pulled by shirtless men, to the massive BBCM/Circus Afterhours Float featuring a selection of gay porn stars, everything was at least interesting to watch. Once again the gay cheerleaders and the Bolo Club Gay line dancers brought the fun and funky music. Can you believe they do that for like, three hours? Insane.

Never failing to give me goose-bumps was the minute of silence along the entire Parade route to honour those lost to discrimination, hate crimes, and AIDS/HIV. You could honestly hear a pin-drop in Montreal during those sixty seconds. Unfortunately for the Queer of the Year float, once their firetruck engine turned off for the moment of silence, they couldn’t get it started again. The parade was stalled for a good 10 minutes, but in a huge surge of pride and community spirit, parade watchers all banded together and actually pushed the firetruck down the street and out of the way. Getting a boost from a Police van, the Queer of the Year float was again on it’s way!

Wrapping up the parade was the big green TD Float. Complete with sexy half naked people giving away free stuff. Gotta love corporate sponsors! At the end of the parade, everyone funnelled into the T-Dance, where people danced the night away. Montreal kissed the LGBTQ community goodnight and had everyone already looking forward to next year.

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