Paris Pridefest

This saturday was an event that I had been looking forward to all month in Paris: pridefest. I have a gay roommate in Boulder that told me it was going on while I was here, and she was really excited for me to see what the gay culture is like here in Paris. I myself was very curious, I actually don’t know anything about gay rights or issues in France. I was not surprised to see a huge crowd for the parade, but I was pleasantly surprised at the diversity in the crowd! I saw people of all ages and races participating and having a great time, and I witnessed absolutely no signs of prejudice or hate like I have before at the same event in Boulder.

I have a friend visiting in Paris that has two moms, and she was out with me at pridefest. Her mom wanted her to bring back a souvenir from the parade, and as soon as we saw the flags everyone was waving we knew that would be the perfect thing. Unfortunately, there were none to be found and everyone we asked was pretty unwilling to give one up. Finally, we saw two very conservative looking older French women standing a little ways off the road holding a couple flags and looking pretty lost. We were a little afraid to approach them since they did not look too friendly, but we decided they would be the most willing to give up their flags since they did not seem into the parade that much. We cautiously asked, and they said no, but then they surprised us and asked why we wanted them. We explained as best as we could the situation, and they were immediately so touched and emotional that they gave us both flags! We eventually learned that they were a couple and also had a son, and they felt very connected to my friend’s parents and their situation. I was so glad not only that we got flags, but that my friend had a really profound moment being able to relate to some French people despite the language barrier and that I could be there to help.