Pride Parade London: ?Love (and Marriage)?

Revellers hold high a rainbow flag at last year's event. Picture: Pride London/Flickr

Saturday, June 29, 2013
9:53 AM

More than 150 groups have registered to take part in today?s Pride Parade 2013 in London, as David Cameron said equal marriage reforms will allow gay schoolchildren to ?stand a little bit taller?.

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The Prime Minister told how he hopes youngsters would be able to see that Parliament ?believes their love is the same as anyone else?s love? as thousands of people prepare to hit the capital?s streets for the annual gathering.

Organisers expect the parade and festival, whose theme is ?Love (and Marriage)?, to be the biggest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender event in London over the last decade.

Among the sponsors is Mayor of London Boris Johnson, who caused a stir after making a controversial joke at a gala dinner for Pride in London about gay men taking their husbands ?up the Arcelor? - a reference to the ArcelorMittal Orbit sculpture in the Olympic Park.

The parade, which begins at 1pm, will travel through the heart of London, along Oxford Street and Regent Street before ending up on Whitehall, and will be followed by events across the city.

Writing in the official Pride guide, Mr Cameron said: ?There will be girls and boys in school today who are worried about being bullied and concerned about what society thinks of them because they are gay or lesbian.

?By making this change they will be able to see that Parliament believes their love is the same as anyone else?s love and that we believe in equality. I think this will enable them to stand that bit taller, be that bit more confident and I am proud of that.?

Michael Salter, chairman of Pride in London, said: ?London is an amazingly diverse city attracting the most talented people from across the world, which is vital to the economic welfare of our city.

?Pride in London is a great opportunity to promote a charity or community group and campaign. This year the theme is Love (and Marriage) to celebrate civil partnerships, parents? love for their children, love of friends and family but it also recognises the Equal Marriage bill going through Parliament.?

London Mayor Mr Johnson, who has provided London LGBT and Community Pride with a grant worth up to ?500,000 to stage the event in 2013 and develop it over five years, said: ?As befits a city with a large LGBT population, London hosts one of the biggest events of the year and I am delighted to support the festivities, which attract people from across the UK and beyond.

?As the parade shows, it is a diverse and multi-faceted community, which makes an enormous contribution to our city?s success, socially, culturally and economically. We should be very proud of London?s reputation as a place where LGBT people can be open about who they are.

?Our city has been at the forefront of the drive towards equality, but let?s not rest on our laurels - of course more needs to be done to tackle prejudice and discrimination. This means standing up against homophobic bullying in the workplace, schools and elsewhere.?

Source: http://www.london24.com/pride_parade_london_love_and_marriage_1_2256830

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