I Went to DC’s Gay Pride Parade. Here Are 9 Things I Saw.

Rachel del Guidice / June 11, 2018

Editor’s note: This article accurately describes a “gay pride” event and contains language and images that may offend some readers.

Thousands of gay rights activists and their supporters celebrated Saturday in Washington, D.C., by participating in and watching the city’s gay pride parade.

The “Pride Month” parade consisted of over 200 floats in addition to marchers and vehicles, and covered 1.5 miles in promoting and celebrating lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals, among other gender identities.

I checked out the event for The Daily Signal, observing the parade and talking with attendees. With a warning that some readers will find this content offensive, here are nine things I noticed:

1. Animosity for the Trump Administration

During a rally before the parade, one speaker called Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson a “wacko” and others in his agency “the other wacko wackos at HUD.”

Carson parted with recent “national tradition,” Politico reported Thursday, by declaring June to be “National Happy Homes Month” and declining to recognize it as Gay Pride Month.

2. Law Enforcement Not Welcome

Signs posted near the parade route read: “No cops at pride.”

(Photo: Rachel del Guidice/The Daily Signal)

3. A ‘F–k Them’ Attitude

Some attendees told me that the deeply held religious beliefs of some Americans about marriage—including those such as bakers who don’t want to be forced to design and make a cake for a same-sex wedding—don’t matter.

“F–k them,” one person said of business owners who would choose not to make a cake or provide floral arrangements for a same-sex wedding.

(Photo: Rachel del Guidice/The Daily Signal)

The Supreme Court ruled June 4 in favor of Jack Phillips, owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop in Lakewood, Colorado, who declined to create a custom cake to celebrate a same-sex wedding because of his traditional Christian beliefs.

Multiple people I interviewed at the parade said bakers should be forced to fill orders that celebrate messages going against their deeply held religious beliefs.

4. Hostility to Traditional Ideas on Marriage

Multiple signs and pins displayed vulgar language suggesting that those who do not support gay marriage are intolerant and hateful.

(Photo: Rachel del Guidice/The Daily Signal)

One person in the parade wore a shirt saying, “Homosexuals are possessed by demons,” which appeared to make fun of the religious beliefs of some who don’t back the LGBT political agenda.

(Photo: Rachel del Guidice/The Daily Signal)

5. Unquestionable Acceptance for the Gay Lifestyle

In contrast to the evidence of hostility and even hatred toward those with traditional views of marriage—one T-shirt read: “If you’re not gay friendly take your b—h a-s home”—the event provided ample public affection for homosexual men and women and acceptance for gay rights.

One marcher held a sign that said, “I love my gay family.” One couple’s sign, “God blessed us with two gay sons.”

(Photo: Rachel del Guidice/The Daily Signal)

6. A Shoutout for Bisexual Moms

One person I encountered along the parade route appeared to be pregnant and wore a tank top with the message “#Still Bisexual,” apparently promoting the opinion that women can have children but be sexually attracted to both men and women.

(Photo: Rachel del Guidice/The Daily Signal)

7. Not Age Appropriate

Aspects of the parade certainly weren’t family friendly or appropriate for children. At one point, men clad only in leather straps marched in front of a school group.

(Photo: Rachel del Guidice/The Daily Signal)

The event also featured trash receptacles along the parade route that advertised lubricant for gay sex.

(Photo: Rachel del Guidice/The Daily Signal)

Some attendees chose not to wear shirts; others wore very revealing outfits.

(Photo: Rachel del Guidice/The Daily Signal)

8. ‘Resist’ Crowd Promotes ‘No Hate on My Ballot’

The anti-Trump “resistance” movement was present in the parade, carrying signs sporting the “HRC” logo of the Human Rights Campaign, one of the nation’s largest advocates of the LGBT political agenda.

Marchers who walked with a “Resist” banner also carried signs with messages such as “Resist. Vote. Win,” “Midterms Matter, Vote 2018,” “Don’t Just Hope for Equality, Vote for It,” and “No Hate on My Ballot.”

(Photo: Rachel del Guidice/The Daily Signal)

9. Planned Parenthood Supports LGBT Rights

Planned Parenthood, the largest provider of abortions in the nation, was present in full force. The organization’s pink shirts, tank tops, and signs had slogans such as “Together We Fight for All,” “#QueersForRepro,” and “Repro rights = LGBTQ Rights.”

(Photo: Rachel del Guidice/The Daily Signal)