Protesting

Back from marching in support of gay marriage/civil rights. It was a gorgeous day today – first time I’ve seen the sun in a while. That was a good enough excuse to get out and go yell about something – plus, protests were planned to happen simultaneously today around the country to make our voices heard about California’s ban on gay marriage, which has really upset and incensed the gay community.

Not sure how the protests went in all of the 300 cities they were planned for, but there were thousands of people marching in Seattle. We started off at Volunteer Park, where there was a DJ getting everyone dancing around in the mood. I must say that gay rallies have the best music of any political protest I have ever attended. Also, we gays are very creative, if I can say so. My favorite signs included:

“If Liza can marry a gay man, why can’t I?”

“Jesus had 2 dads”

“Let Dumbledore Marry!”

“Voldemort voted Yes on 8” (two separate – and distinct gay Harry Potter signs – they were not related, which especially amused me.)

“You can’t legislate whom I love” – I just love that they used the word “whom”. I’m assuming this was from the gay librarians.

And my personal favorite:

“Single? 206-788-5793”

Seattle’s a great city – lots of people were on the sidewalks cheering us on. A friend said that it’s not fun to protest in Seattle because everyone’s on our side, but I think that it rocks to live in a liberal, open minded city. Having lived in NYC, LA and Seattle, I haven’t had to experience living in a red place…don’t think it’s really for me. I think I’ll just skip that adventure.

I loved that there were tons of couples – gay and straight, lots of kids and plenty of dogs. The mood was upbeat – there were a few protesters yelling about us going to hell (I notice that they have very big signs. Are they compensating for something? Anyways, I digress…) and when we marched by the first group of protesters, folks started chanting “Love, Love, Love, Love” which just got me kinda choked up. That’s really what this is all about, isn’t it?

All of the pix I shot today are posted here. You may notice I have a weakness for taking pictures of pretty women. Sue me.