On the 1st of August 2009, I was amongst thousands of supporters at the National Day of Action for Same Sex Marriage rally in Fed Square, Melbourne.

This day of action is part of a nationwide campaign, Equal Love, which is in its fifth year of pressuring the government into legalising same sex marriages. In 2008, the federal government amended over 100 laws to allow same sex couples (domestic partners) the same financial and work-related entitlements as heterosexual couples.

Marriage, however, is still illegal for same sex couples. Many participants of the rally were dressed in wedding outfits, and later on, a total of 65 couples were (illegally) married, exchanging vows on the steps of the city’s registry office.

Besides wedding outfits, rainbow colours were of course also a popular feature:

And political t-shirts, button badges, face paint, and eye-grabbing outfits:

(how gorgeous is that guy on the right, seriously)

The rally started with a gathering and some speeches at Fed Square, before taking to the streets. If you’re so inclined, here’s a video of the walk (“hey hey, ho ho, homophobia’s got to go!”)

Here are some photos from the walk:

For the rest of my pictures, take a look around this Flickr set: Equal Love.

Also, watch some videos from the same campaign, of “Mr Government” trying unsuccessfully to schmoooze “Ms Equality”

It was a very positive experience for me, to be around all these people. The parade had thousands of participants, many people in love, with their partners — all they want is to be able to marry each other. Straight people fighting for equal rights. Queer people fighting for their rights. In the end, it’s all just an effort to get love and equality recognised: why should anyone be allowed to police relationships between consenting adults?

As for police at the rally — sure there were police around…they were making sure everyone was safe, and that traffic was still going smoothly, letting the parade through first.

Of course, I came home that day to news that my friends were being tear-gassed, water cannoned, and abused by our FRU and police force in Malaysia, for taking a stand against the ISA. What can I say? The difference was stark.

I love Malaysia, but it breaks my heart when I read about the horrible things our government is capable of.

As for those in KL, Seksualiti Merdeka is now into its second year, and happening soon: 12th-16th August, at The Annexe, Central Market. I hope you attend, and find the event as edifying and rejuvenating as I found this rally.

Flickr: Equal Love (by Tilted World)

The Age: Big crowds turn out in support of gay marriage

Official website: Equal love

Hi everyone,

First of all — a big thank you to you all for your support!

This is just to remind you about the event on Saturday, June 20th at Spaces, Besant Nagar. Highlights of the evening are the release of the Human Rights Watch report, “This Alien Legacy: The Origins of Sodomy Laws in British Colonialism” by Alok Gupta, a panel discussion featuring some of the most recognizable people in the field, and several performances. The Facebook page for the event, with details, is here: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/event.php?eid=103166419273.

Also, please take note that the Center for Counselling, Chennai will be holding a support group meeting for families of LGBT individuals, during which they can get factual information, ask questions and meet others who are struggling to cope with similar issues relating to their adult children. Entrance is free, but restricted to parents, siblings and LGBT individuals. Please RSVP your interest in attending to + 91-9884100135 or magdalene.jeyarathnam@gmail.com.

In other good news, we have secured the police permit for the parade on June 28! The parade will be along the Marina Beach stretch, and will start at 4pm at the Labour Statue.

We look forward to seeing you at the various Pride events — and thank you for your continued support. Please direct all further enquiries regarding the event at Spaces to Aniruddh at aniruddh.vasudevan@gmail.com, and enquiries regarding the parade to Shiva at shivaa.tn@gmail.com.

Much warmth,
Sharanya

For more information on the event, please visit the Facebook group: Chennai LGBT Pride 2009.

To Sharanya, Aniruddh, and everyone else involved: Good on ya! To those attending the parade, I hope you have fun, and heaps of pride. I know some may be hesitant about reactions towards the parade. Be brave, and I wish everyone a wonderful experience.

I dream of the day when we will hold a subversive pride parade in KL, followed by a legit one, and then…one day, our celebrations will be about how love belongs to us all.

Read Sharanya’s post, The Venus Flytrap: Not a Private Matter for her thoughts on sexuality rights, privacy and the pride parade.

A gentle reminder: you don’t necessarily have to be queer or fall into any of the four categories to walk in a pride parade .