Hundreds of thousands of people gathered for gay pride parades, parties and celebrations around the world Sunday. Most events were peaceful, but in Istanbul, Turkish police fired water cannon and rubber pellets to disperse a crowd.
It was not immediately clear why Turkish police stopped marchers in Istanbul, where gay pride parades have been held in previous years. Turkish media reported that police said people would not to be allowed to march this year.
In New York, massive crowds gathered ahead of the city’s annual gay pride parade, which was first held in 1970. Organizers said they expected a record crowd for the event, two days after the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark ruling to legalize gay marriage.
This year’s march is being led by two of Britain’s most famous openly gay actors, Ian McKellan and Derek Jacobi. Another massive parade is being taking place in San Francisco, California.
Parades were held Saturday in London and Paris.
Earlier Sunday, Jim Obergefell, the plaintiff in the Supreme Court gay marriage case, spoke to ABC television about the decision, which he said “still feels a bit unreal.” He said he will continue to fight against discrimination and added that gay people are simply asking to be treated equally and fairly.
Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, appearing immediately after Obergefell on This Week, said he was deeply moved by Obergefell’s comments. But he said the ruling changes “not so much the product but the process” of the United States governs, since it was made by unelected people instead of legislators.
June 26, 2015
