St. Pete Pride parade has grown from a small event into a celebration noticed by the entire city.
One of the largest gatherings for the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community in Florida, the event has more than doubled in attendance since its beginning in 2003.
Back then, the small parade brought a crowd of 13,000 onlookers and participants. This year, St. Petersburg Police estimated that 40,000 people were on hand to watch or be part of the procession down the Grand Central business district.
Drag queens leaned from floats tossing free condoms and Mardi Gras beads like candy. Lesbian couples pushed their children in strollers. Volunteers passed out orange juice boxes to marchers in the parade. A mobile van offered free HIV tests.
Pride is a mostly celebratory event, except for the presence of a handful of protestors. Police watched from the sidelines. They fenced off detractors with orange construction cones, to prevent a confrontation. Synthesized techno music blared from nearby speakers as evangelists preached through megaphones about sodomy and sin.
In response, parade participants defiantly hugged and kissed in sight of the protest zone.
Others took pictures to poke fun of the message. One marcher sounded an air horn to drown out a preacher with a megaphone. The crowd erupted in cheers.
It was also a day to console and support victims of hate crimes.
One young woman drove her graffiti-painted “fag bug” through the parade amid cheers.
There was also a memorial to Ryan Skipper, a Polk County man stabbed 20 times during a robbery and dumped along side the road where he died.
To some revelers the St. Pete Pride is a colorful display of drag queens and leather-clad motorcycle riders. To some it’s just an excuse to party. To some it’s a day to spend with family and loved ones. But everyone at the pride parade has a reason to be there.
Here are the stories of five people we encountered along sidewalks last week:
PHOTOS by Mary Andom
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