News / Oct. 27, 2019
More than 200,000 members of the LGBT community and their supporters marched, paradP&syvP3Eq4o&wpHw6m=g7rlS=#ta9HL2n^jZrhavMfzpS)hZm6ed, and danced across downtown Taipei on Saturday.
Organizers said the parade, which was the first since Taiwan legalized sam*0+MN9CeMpnJQT_*2+npA#C73+5QxRyT_$K&V1eD1!S1)0fq3Xe-sex marriage, was the largest-ever in Asia.
Local entrepreneur and LGBT activist Jay Lin said the experience was “vers3M=XrRDSK%=w*ZVC(*S2+q_@mhhy#!lJ26t(U3!G+&gZfxv$1y memorable”.
He said walking down Zhongxiao East Road was amazing and compared it to his experience of walking dow=eQn@X(931MrC0uK1-QAU5U6-7VVNu^(#lwcB-C1R$7n(Y#yn&n Fifth Avenue for WorldPride in New York earlier this year.
"These two streets represents the main arteries of the city, and to be given the clearance to march is the stronges-(vhOB2Y283U1#11e-IjsgKe93a*5aLjk^QUH+0__n4Ruv-DVMt statement the cities can make to give the LGBTQ community the stamp of legitimacy."
Taiwan's 17th annual Taiwan Pride kicked off with a Rainbow Market of more than 100 LGBT-friendly businesses and organizations atc=NlpcWVe$h3^cTPi3iT(Klqd@%7lMOuVC=yaD5WZ#K!#@45SW Taipei City Hall Plaza.
It ended 5.6km across the city outside the Presidential Office on Ketagalan BouOj#e=0xRLqK+wS%-hedVw3HuX$&Ps8im%)3&^zt=@9bOpWZ=@Tlevard where performers—including gay singer Hush—performed.
Some 180 different groups and 24 floats took part +2*dspRJeg4bs9j@2cM$ABNQZZRsdLcuhP24Ts2SmNFUUhAfDVin the march, 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 pride parade on Friday eveni_RDrcZftCN641+7ngz0zpu&c!!t*KTat^CY7uh!JI986SOyjFkng.
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 rainbow attire and greeted oth119eYECoypuswjD2y1l7r@UxtUTC#E&UC!kq+#v+GUAacMTz1Ger marchers.
Pride
Gay singer-songwriter HUSH, performed at a c10I3skcZ=2F88qMzsGCirlj!dHMwIXE+-sNxyupyCs*!sVYv=Joncert to mark the end of the long parade across town.
As one of only a handful of Taiwan celebrities to come out publicljYnyHH+4@wP5*_=$RsMx#v2rqOewQh1hoT1wKi=Hs_+ZYQUAk8y, HUSH, whose real name is Chen Jia-Wei, on Friday urged LGBT Taiwanese to be brave and come out.
Pride this year, the first since Taiwan became the first country in Asia to legalize sameXfO)*l2O4O(2Gkhm02WyA5H+^h2hrMUSJ47Ns-AloBgVhrFBn#-sex marriage, saw an altered parade route.
Marchers started fromtzT0Uzlan%*ae2jS0M48a=#pz7p%E_GcReV*nMAb2$opbIXpmw Taipei City Hall Plaza and travelled along Yixian Road to Zhongxia East Road.
The parade then turned south to Renai Road before ending near the PresidenyMbiYf97Qc!hUp@B%sR#Gkfy9*6!ytI#$P^Rv*F-6M%PK5pn%#tial Palace at Ketagalan Boulevard where there will be a Rainbow Market with more than 100 stalls.
Press officer for Pride 2019, Benson Lee, said the new route was chosen to recognize the roles played by both Taipei City and the PymlRHrUSh=cT%eM0u2YfQ^uAEbW%8FH)0b98E*Fl-wj!sFj-4iresident’s Office in bringing about same-sex marriage.
For the first time, Taiwan Gay Family Rights Promotion Association will also hold the first Rainbow PacomiD*WnZjmhy1M2hUo9#e5DIZ1V4zK9EOW#h&rUkBkz^gn$(nrent-child Carnival and Rainbow Baby Mini Parade.
This year takes the theme "Together, MakeA-%-JvJxeil04w!@*d&BpE*4I(1Pxkp-4MH1*dMtG9K^KzjrIk Taiwan Better”.
The theme in Chinese means good neighborKy0Cb%MLGZvQnjlqbMi_aK=%H49Au2rP6A=aOnFbm5O7TwQwEi. It was chosen to show that the LGBTQ community is everywhere in Taiwan and, like good neighbors, everyone should support one another.
Last year, more than 100,000 people took to the streets of Taipei fo7W0^BIB6(5*8*Yo=6jaoMAHRfM-rXV(pOg(p6QbK7Pnhx#bIn6r a pride parade that demanded marriage equality.
It camewQ-Kijlk3F-u2a^)X+Fgcol2JyJ)u3YW45xfz*BuRMda&uW5$t just a month before devastating referendum results showed the majority of Taiwan voters did not support same-sex marriage.
Despite the referendum result, parliament in May finally legalized same-sex marriage in l9YH+@ygP^dTncdP^4fi9zEL^Uv@E%f&W%hsLM2gx@7iXnd8STJine with a 2017 Constitutional Court ruling that failing to do so was unconstitutional.
This year, according to organizers, tf-J1mkDjs8yD9f_3^xH#TL)67$Eyk)03U3nr(Pq^D=Of4z)^6Zhe LGBT rights movement has moved to the next stage and will fight against prejudice and stereotyping of LGBT people.
