This year I attended my first Pride parade, and it inspired in me some reflections about Pride festivities in general. Allow me to share these reflections with you, along with pictures taken at Seattle’s Pride parade.
Pride festivities are usually pretty well-known for the more outrageous, outlandish, and sometimes shocking displays. Naked (with full body paint) bicyclists join men in leather fetish gear and 8-inch platform heels. Women and men alike don feathers, sparkles, and wear very little else. Here are a few examples:
Of course, many others join in the Pride festivities who don’t make quite the same impression. Take, for example, the Seattle Librarians, doing a choreographed dance with book carts:
There are also sports groups, political figures, and military representatives:
Most people know there are the religious nay-sayers who stand on the sidelines and make their disapproval known. This man held up a sign near us; his sandwich board read, “Fear God”:
another woman across the way was holding a sign pointed at the parade marchers that said something like, “God loves you and hates your sin.” Seems like it just wouldn’t be pride without the naysayers.
In the midst of all of this, I personally believe that the true crux of the matter is this:
Pride is about love.
It is about loving shamelessly, loving without regret, loving unconditionally. It is about loving ourselves the way we are and loving one another in the midst of our differences.
It’s about encouraging and celebrating romantic and familial love in all its glorious incarnations:
It’s about God’s love for ALL of us, exactly the way we are:
Simply put, it’s about love.
So to all the outrageous, outlandishly-dressed Pride partiers, I say, more power to you! And to the churches and political figures and librarians and everyone else who came to show their support, you are so very appreciated. And especially, thank you to those who point out the heart of what Pride is really all about: love.