Huge Crowds for Berlin Gay Pride After US Ruling Legalizing Same Sex Marriage

Germany introduced civil unions for gay and lesbian couples in 2001, but they do not have the right to marry. Earlier this month the upper house of the German parliament adopted a resolution calling for the legalization of same-sex marriage. Hundreds and thousands of people filled the streets of Berlin for the city's Gay Pride parade on Saturday, June 26, 2015, a day after the US Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage nationwide. The landmark Supreme Court ruling stated that all 50 US states must carry out and recognize same-sex marriages. Saturday's Gay pride march was a typically festive affair, with lashings of sequins, fake eyelashes, wigs and feather boas, rainbow flags, and even one reveler who appeared to have dipped his penis in gold paint. The crowds were a riot of color under the grey skies with many demonstrators in costume, including US embassy staffer Tim Standaert, who painted his torso in blue with an enormous red heart as he waved a rainbow-hued Stars and Stripes flag.

'We are all different, we are all the same', was the theme of this year's march. 'A day without lesbians is like a day without sunshine', read one placard that seemed especially fitting for the miserable weather condition.

Tens of thousands of revelers also gathered in Dublin for the Irish capital's pride event, a month after that country became the first in the world to vote by referendum in favor of legalizing gay marriage.

Source-AFP