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Tue, April 13, 2021 | 09:31
Queer parade held in Seoul
성적 소수자를 위한 ‘2012 퀴어 퍼레이드’ 열려
Posted : 2012-06-03 19:20
Updated : 2012-06-03 19:20
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Two members of a lesbians group perform during a parade of sexual minorities on Cheonggye Street in Seoul, Saturday. Yonhap

By Kim Rahn

Hundreds of gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgenders took to a street in downtown Seoul on Saturday in an event designed to nurture pride in sexual minorities and enhance public understanding of them.

A parade was held along Cheonggye Street in the afternoon on the last day of the week-long Korea Queer Culture Festival that began on May 24.

Such an event is very rare in Korea, where Confucian values are still strong and talking publicly about sexual orientation is considered taboo. The annual festival, which began in 2000, is the largest event for gays and gay rights activists here.

“The parade is intended to let sexual minorities know that they are not alone in the world and help them mingle with others with either the same or different sexual orientation,” a staffer of the organizing committee said.

Followed by several festival organizers holding flags of the event, members of gay and lesbian groups, including the Solidarity for LGBT Human Rights of Korea and Korean Gay Men’s Human Rights Group, marched down the street.

There was no rain but many walked under rainbow colored umbrellas — multi-colored things are symbolic of sexual minorities, representing diversity. Some members of a gay group “Gay Creation,” in their 30s or 40s, appeared only in swimsuits on a truck and squirted water from water pistols. Several drag queens in dresses danced around.

During the one-hour parade, the participants called for regular human rights and a better understanding of sexual minorities from the public, saying they are discriminated against because they have a different orientation.

“The slogan of this year’s festival is The Queer Love Song: Queers as Folks, Making Strong Connections. We wanted to talk about the rights to form various kinds of families, those different from the traditional family comprised of a female mother, male dad and children with blood ties,” the staffer said.

After the parade, gay art groups presented musical performances. The official program was followed by an overnight after-party at a club in Itaewon.

Besides the parade, the festival organizer held exhibitions, plays, movie screenings and seminars about sexual minorities.



성적 소수자를 위한 ‘2012 퀴어 퍼레이드’ 열려
2일 오후 서울 청계2가 을지한빛광장에서 이색적인 축제 '2012 퀴어(Queer) 퍼레이드'가 개최됐다. 게이, 레즈비언 등 성적 소수자들이 거리로 나선 것. 올해로 13회째를 맞는 영어로 동성애를 뜻하는 퀴어 퍼레이드의 슬로건은 '퀴어연가:가족, 연을 맺다'로 퍼레이드를 통해 우리 사회에서 다양한 가족을 구성할 권리에 대해 이야기 했다. 강정현 조직위원장은 "1년에 한 번씩 10일 정도 열리는 이 축제는 한국의 성소수자에게 1년을 살아갈 수 있게 하는 큰 힘이 되는 축제"라고 밝혔다.
Emailrahnita@koreatimes.co.kr Article ListMore articles by this reporter









 
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