Hi. So I've been wanting to go to a gay pride parade for a while now, but my parents have told me that people run around the city naked and that some of their... parts are painted rainbow. Is that true? Because I don't really want to see naked people, no offense. -Love
A pride parade was once a demonstration of yhe lack of lgbtq rights and respect. It was meant originally to protest and fight for equality. Now we have changed into a demonstration of love and acceptance and of course pride in our sexuality and gender identity. Some people want to take this event and make a statement or add a 'shock' value to the straight or cis gendered folks. That plus the backdrop of it being a protest equals some ahem naked folks. But fear not! I had not seen many naked people at my first pride in Toronto and it was actually more colourful and vibrant than naked men with Rainbow painted dicks. When it's night sure you see more of the scandalous dressing but theyre one to a thousand. Enjoy the fact that so many different people are coming together for are great cause of love and equality.
At the prides I'm familiar with, the vast majority of people are fully clothed. Many people marching wear a T-shirt from their organisation, or something with a rainbow, or some kind of slogan, or nothing special at all. Then you have some people who are scantily clad but still decent. Then you have some more people who are only wearing underwear/Speedos (this might include some people with uncovered breasts). There are few naked people, perhaps, but if they are there it is honestly very few. For the most part, Pride is a family event. At some parades nudity is specifically forbidden, so you could check the rules for the Pride you are thinking about attending (for example, Edmonton in Canada reminds marchers that public nudity is prohibited at all times).
I've only seen footage/photos of Pride Parades (not something I want to attend - I don't want to see naked people either!) and they were a bit shocking in the amount of rainbow hued nudity. Now I'm sure not all places are the same. And it is possible that what I saw was posted specifically for the shock value. I'd be wary of San Francisco though. They have a corner where naked men hang out almost everyday. Just gives you an idea of how lax they are there! Sebby45
