seattle indymedia center

The local corporate media coverage on the parade was practically nil. All they covered was on how much $$ Broadway merchants would loose if the parade went to the Center.

These parades only serve to perpetuate the stereotype that homosexuals just want to dress up in ridiculous costumes and draw attention to themselves.

I think you can be gay and pround without prancing around like an idiot under the influece.

...or making pointless, snide comments anonymously...

That parade did reinforce stereotypes that you gay people are trying to crush. Why, when given a venue of speech, a venue in which yoiu are trying to be taken seriously, the majority of your "speech" is drag queens and butches? The person with the most repsect was the woman who held a sign that said she loved her lesbian daughter. She didn't need leather, or technocolor wigs, or nipple clamps. The Gay parade is a major reason that you set back your agenda and will not be taken seriously. Way to shoot yourself in the foot.

Yikes, Babarovich, you need to get out of the suburbs more often. This is the way we party in the big city.

very good point. Some of my gay friends get irritated when they see a gay "pride" event turn into mardi gras on crack. These people play into every negative stereotype that society has ever had for homosexuals and they hurt their own cause.

Look at it this way, when there is a parade for Irish heritage, you don't see people looking like clowns and prancing around like freaks. Check out a st. patricks day parade, you see nothing like this. That is pride. Not humiliating yourself in some stupid attempt to spite people.

I feel bad for normal, down to earth gays that end up being associated with these loons.

The fact is, there is a huge variety of gay people and I certainly do not look to the for-profit media to do anything more than they do...show one dimensional views of us...just like they do in most other areas of inquiry or comment, be it political analysis or social commentary..so let's stop being surprised everytime they do their thing. Instead, let's all try not to buy into the media's habit of mocking the portions of the gay community that chose to dress colorfully, etc., ask yourself, what exactly is my problem with people who do this? Is it any of my legitimate business? Answer: NO.

after spending months with my homophobic family, pride was the joy upon joys. pride is for all queers, homos, etc... whether you're a drag queen, leather daddy, or mainstream lesbian or gay person. all kinds represent. it's the one time of the year when we can all be ourselves in public. for those of you who aren't empowered by the experience, just don't go. noone is forcing you to go, look at pictures of it or check it out in the media. but just because you're not into it, don't give it a bad rap. if it's not for you, it's not for you. i love it -- fabulous drag queens, perverts, mainstream folks and all.

Well, actually - speaking of Mardi Gras on crack, what is it about the fact that folks on Mardi Gras (and other celebratory days) get trashy drunk in public, display their breasts for beads (or other body parts) and start fights (hmm wasn't this in Seattle?). From my take, it really doesn't matter who the group is when you're going to do a big celebration you do it over the top. When we have "gay" pride it is basically the one day in the year that has been set aside for gay people to party in public. Does it look bad? Well, maybe - and honestly I don't think it's gonna sway most folks one way or another in their opinion on "gay" folks who already have one set. Just like anywhere else, you got different factions of folks from the demure to the freaks - hence our society and regardless of how you look at it, when it comes down to it - we all just are wanting to have some fun. Let's leave the other 364 days of the year for persecution and discrimination.