I love a para-a-a-ade!

I got a prime spot to watch Portland's Gay Pride Parade today -- at the intersection of NW Naito and Davis, where the parade route turned the corner. I was able to see each contingent approaching down Davis and then rounding the corner right in front of me. The parade was huge, as was the watching crowd that lined the streets. Energy and enthusiasm were high, even though my vantage point was well over half-way through the parade route and marchers must have been walking for an hour or so.

A group of soldiers appeared early on, with an anti-DADT banner. At least one seemed to be wearing a hood to conceal identity -- a sad necessity perhaps.

Another participant was our Congressman, Earl Blumenauer:


(Click pictures for bigger versions.)

My impression is that the majority of the watching crowd (who were highly supportive, waving and clapping with enthusiasm) weren't gay; there were plenty of male-female couples and swarms of children. No one showed any sign of discomfort at their kids watching the event or interacting with the marchers. The "gay = anti-family" meme clearly had no resonance.

Even dogs got into the spirit of the thing:


There were a lot of churches represented, with banners bearing "welcome all" messages -- so much for the recent timorousness of "Sojourners". Many major companies, local or with local branches, had contingents too. Wells Fargo had a stagecoach drawn by real horses (I'm not sure whether the horses were gay). The group that got the most applause, though, was Planned Parenthood.

The view down Davis Street was a sea of people:


And what's a parade without costumes?


I wasn't aware that SlutWalks had spread to Portland -- perhaps this was their local debut:


Not sure what the "Prepare for combat" thing was about. Maybe in case Fred Phelps showed up?


There was also the martially-impressive "Last Regiment of Syncopated Drummers", of whom I unfortunately don't have a photo, though I got them on video.

In a sign of how far things have come since Stonewall, there was plenty of police participation, including the Multnomah County Sheriff's Department:


The police also provided abundant security -- I saw them shoo away a couple of cars that had somehow gotten onto the blocked- off streets, but no actual hostility or negativity from anyone.

A familiar-looking person standing just six feet from me turned out to be fellow Portland blogger Murr Brewster. I can hardly wait for her parade post, if she writes one.