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SALT LAKE CITY -- Despite the downpour, crowds packed State Street and 200 East to catch the annual Utah Pride parade on Sunday.
The parade is the culmination of the annual festival put on by Utah's gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) community.
Colorful costumes, parade floats, bands and community groups participated in the parade, which is the second-largest in Utah (the largest is the annual Days of '47 parade on July 24). Organizers estimate approximately 20,000 people will attend the parade or the Pride festival taking place at Washington Square.
The grand marshal of this year's parade is Cleve Jones, who helped to create the AIDS Memorial Quilt and a protege of slain gay rights leader Harvey Milk.
Speaking at a rally at Washington Square, Jones urged festival-goers to participate in an Oct. 11 march on Washington to demand Congress do more to establish equal rights for GLBT individuals.
This year's festivities have a definite political undertone to them. Utah has been in the eye of the storm over same-sex marriage, largely due to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' involvement in the campaign to pass Proposition 8 in California. The ballot measure passed last year bans same-sex marriage in that state.
"It was a huge defeat, but I actually think it has fueled the hearts and minds of people," said Valarie Larabee, the director of the Utah Pride Center, which provides outreach to GLBT residents. "I think it has been a shot in the arm that we needed."
Larabee said more people have become aware and active in speaking up for gay rights.
"I think people are really awake to the fact that there are people living in this country that don't have full civil rights under the constitution," she said.
Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. was honored by festival organizers this year for his support of civil unions for same sex couples as well as his support of the "Common Ground" initiatives in the Utah State Legislature. The bills would have provided some rights and protections for gays and lesbians, but were defeated in this past session.
E-mail:bwinslow@ksl.com
