NEW YORK (AP) – Gay pride parades Sunday in New York, San Francisco and other cities are spotlighting resistance to what participants see as new pressure on gay rights, while contending with the prospect of protests over the events’ own diversity and direction.
In a year when leaders are anxious about President Donald Trump’s agenda, both the New York and San Francisco parades will be headed by groups more focused on protest than celebration. In New York, grand marshals – including the American Civil Liberties Union – were chosen to represent facets of a “resistance movement.”
LGBT activists have been galled by the Trump administration’s rollback of federal guidance advising school districts to let transgender students use the bathrooms and locker rooms of their choice. The Republican president also broke from Democratic predecessor Barack Obama’s practice of issuing a proclamation in honor of Pride Month.
Revelers started to line up early Sunday for the march, waving rainbow flags. Kendall Bermudez, 21, from New Jersey, said she thought people might be afraid to come out this year.
“But I think with all these people here, they’re going to show we’re fighting back and we’re proud of who we are,” she said. “I think we’re going to overcome it and show Trump who’s boss, well, who’s the real boss.”