Jun 16, 2007Articles: Gay Pride Attracts Tens Of Thousands In Rome
By vanrozenheim
(Italy) - Tens of thousands Saturday staged the Gay Pride parade in Rome, urging the Italian government to fast-track plans to grant homosexual couples legal status and override Vatican objections. The raucous and colourful crowd, which included transvestites and lawmakers, marched under a baking sun from Rome's Saint Paul's Gate to the Basilica of Saint John Lateran, the official ecclesiastical seat of the Pope as Bishop of Rome, where anti-gay protestors had staged a giant rally last month. The marchers held up banners screaming: "For a more European Italy," "Rights for All," and "Equality, Dignity and Secularism," as they called upon Prime Minister Romano Prodi to speed up plans to recognise gay unions.
