ITALY: GAY PRIDE ORGANISERS SAY THAT MORE THAN 400,000 GAYS AND LESBIANS HAVE TAKEN PART IN GAY PRIDE

Record ID: 278317

  • Title: ITALY: GAY PRIDE ORGANISERS SAY THAT MORE THAN 400,000 GAYS AND LESBIANS HAVE TAKEN PART IN GAY PRIDE
  • Date: 9th July 2000
  • Summary: ROME, ITALY (JULY 8, 2000) ( REUTERS) 1. SLV GAY PRIDE PARADE MOVING THROUGH STREETS OF ROME 0.03 2. MV SEMI-NAKED WOMEN DANCING ON TOP OF FLOAT; SEMI NAKED WOMAN HOLDING SIGN SAYING EVA - THE FIRST WOMAN IN THE WORLD (2 SHOTS) 0.12 3. SLV FLOATS MOVING THROUGH STREETS WITH TRANSVESTITES DANCING; SLV/MV MEN ON FLOAT LIKE A BATH, THROWING WA
  • Embargoed: 24th July 2000 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: ROME, ITALY
  • Country: Italy
  • Reuters ID: LVA2NUI53DL7PTBLNEMWQ2CJVYHM
  • Story Text: Gay Pride organisers said that more than 400,000 gay
    men and women and heterosexuals took part in a colourful
    display of Gay Pride in Rome on Saturday which has angered
    Roman Catholics celebrating the Holy Year.

    Transvestites danced on top of carnival floats,
    semi-naked women moved to the beat of Latin American music and
    gay men threw bath water and bubbles over the thousands of
    people who had turned out to celebrate the gay pride march in
    Rome on Saturday (July 8).

    Fabiana Franca, a transvstite from Hamburg, Germany blew a
    kiss to Rome as she passed through the streets wearing her
    ball gown.

    A group of Swedish gay men, waving their Swedish flags
    said: "Jesus loves us all, God loves us all. Be proud, be
    happy respect and love each other."
    But when asked what they thought of the Vatican one of the
    men replied by blowing a raspberry while another said: "Men
    in dresses what could be better."
    One Catholic priest did turn out to support the gay pride
    march despite the fact that the Vatican preaches that gay sex
    is a sin. The Vatican had said that the gay pride festival
    should not have taken place during the Holy Year celebrations
    of the year 2000.

    The march organisers were given permission at the last
    minute to march past Rome's famous Colosseum and the sound of
    motorbike horns rang out and shouts of love as the parade
    passed by.

    "I heard that the estimate is more than 400,000 (people)
    so it's a big success, its more than double what was
    expected," said one of the festival organisers Ian Agostino.

    The party is sure to continue well into the evening as
    the gay men and women gather at Rome's Tor di Valle this
    evening for a concert including singers Geri Halliwell and
    Gloria Gaynor.


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