Pride of the city
Image: Waving all colours on Sydney Harbour Bridge at Pride March. Image: Daniel Boud
A pinnacle event in every sense, the Pride March across the Sydney Harbour Bridge yesterday morning helped draw a spectacular close Sydney WorldPride. With made-to-order clear, sunny weather in an atmosphere of beaming joy and solidarity, 50,000 LGBTQI+ people and their allies walked hand in hand, waving flags, bearing banners, showing their colours.
It’s rare that permission is given for the Sydney Harbour Bridge to be closed to traffic, so granting it for this event is a statement of support from the city and the wider public.
The Bridge is arguably Australia’s most recognised landmark internationally and its high profile lends weight and significance to this event which, as much as a celebration was also a clarion call to countries around the world, in particular in the Asia-Pacific region, to recognise the rights of their LGBTQI+ people.
With the route beginning on the north side, the marching column of colour moved across the glistening harbour, over the top of Circular Quay, through Macquarie St to end either at the Domain where the Rainbow Republic concert was taking place later in the day, or in Hyde Park, at the base of Pride Villages in Oxford Street.
