Mardi Gras: A parade, a protest, a riotous party

Shifter says:

12:03pm | 04/03/11

It’s interesting that the gays choose this method to “celebrat(e) the freedom to love who we damn well choose”. The out and out homophobes, the people who won’t change their views and will prefer to stick their heads in the sand, those who “don’t ask, don’t tell”, they are the ones who will get angry at a display such as the Mardi Gras.

The rest of us, we accept, and we don’t care who you love. Just like we do every other day. Hence as Blazes says, it gets people angry, and those people aren’t going to change.

So why not celebrate Mardi Gras as the party it was always intended to be? I’m going to sound like I’m comparing AFL fans with out queers here, but I don’t believe there’s simply the numbers that care in the same manner. TV ratings suggest that 3.7 million people watched the AFL grand final, or roughly 18% of the population whereas according to 2005 survey results 2-3% of the Australian population identify as gay.

Chances are then, that less people are offended enough to react in anger by the AFL GF than Mardi Gras.

Bilby says:

02:06pm | 04/03/11

Blazes - I think one of the major impediments to acceptance is that too many people have this twisted and very limited idea of what it is to be gay. Flaming for the fellas, butch for the gals. They don’t see that our gay brothers and sisters, like everyone else, cover the full spectrum. On the other hand should the ignorance of the general population stop the party? That doesn’t sound right. Maybe if more normal stuff (like Modern Family for instance) were presented in the main stream media it would act as a buffer. That way it would be treated like Carnivale. Completely debauched, not something I’d let my kid go to, but not representative of all gay people.

Rob says:

09:17pm | 04/03/11

“all the gays I know” sounds terribly patronising to me. Nice work.

Gregg says:

02:43am | 05/03/11

@Blazes,
Just how many people are that lot you claim to know about for I reckon there are plenty of straights who just love it for what it is, the party that Andi says it should be celebrated for.
I was a bit pissed off a few years back when they stopped televising it and do hope they start it up again.
Have a great time if you’re at it again Andi

Steve says:

03:28am | 05/03/11

That’s what I’ve always thought of it. The gay people I know aren’t fond of the mardi gras for the reasons you mention. It really just perpetuates stereotypes. Not every gay man is a mincing, lisping drag queen type and not every lesbian is a butch punk type.
I can’t bring myself to watch it. It’s just embarassing.

Blazes says:

10:52am | 05/03/11

““all the gays I know” sounds terribly patronising to me. Nice work.”

Rob, how is that possibly patronising? It’s just a statement of fact!

Why do you take offence when no offence is intended?

The freckled minx says:

11:27am | 05/03/11

Don’t over think it - love it for the organisational skill and togetherness, the costumes, the colours, the people (all kinds) and the fun of it!  Any chance to celebrate is great!

Nic says:

12:49pm | 05/03/11

All ‘the gays’ you know? hmmmmmmmm.

Max says:

02:58pm | 05/03/11

I object to being called homophobic. I do not fear ‘homosexuals. I am just one of the majority of Australians who disagree with the homosexual domination of Australia’s media. All I want is the freedom to say “you are wrong” and that your Mardi Gras is detrimental to those participating.

Frank says:

06:14pm | 05/03/11

Yeah, Mardi Gras is great!! The whole city shuts down so a minor piece of the community can be “themselves” while police deal with the most violent night of the year and an explosion of even more drugs on the street.Then December comes around and theres’s no Christmas parade to bring my kids to because of cost and the risk of imposing on people who don’t celebrate Christmas.

Times have changed. We get it. Your gay and your proud and today is the day you can celebrate it. Wow! How about like the rest of the community, just live your life and be yourself for 365 days a year and stop making such a big deal about being “who you are” and just be yourself.

Helen says:

11:54pm | 05/03/11

My sentiments exactly Blazes. Well put!

Luke says:

04:26pm | 06/03/11

Frank - childless homosexuals pay a life taxes so your kids can go to school. They also pay the price of an over-populated, dying planet, thanks to breeders like yourself. I think one night isn’t too much to ask for, especially considering they are discriminated against for something that they are BORN WITH - no-one chooses to be gay - you choose to be a parent.

Luke says:

04:27pm | 06/03/11

Frank - childless homosexuals pay a life taxes so your kids can go to school. They also pay the price of an over-populated, dying planet, thanks to breeders like yourself. I think one night isn’t too much to ask for, especially considering they are discriminated against for something that they are BORN WITH - no-one chooses to be gay - you choose to be a parent.

TM says:

07:49am | 07/03/11

“childless homosexuals pay a life taxes so your kids can go to school. They also pay the price of an over-populated, dying planet, thanks to breeders like yourself. I think one night isn’t too much to ask for, especially considering they are discriminated against for something that they are BORN WITH - no-one chooses to be gay - you choose to be a parent.”

Luke, pull your head in mate; link me to any piece of research that suggests homosexuality is genetic. It doesn’t exist, they are yet to find any substantial evidence that this is the case. Homosexuality is nurture, not nature.

That being the case, the Mardi Gras had it’s place in the 80s as a means of telling people “hey, there are people out there that prefer the company of their own sex”, but nowadays, when all the talk is on “equality” it further separates them from the rest of society. Personally, I couldn’t give a flying f*** if two men like their own company, what they do in their personal life has nothing to do with me. What does sh** me no end is the constant requirement of shoving this propaganda down our throats (no pun intended). Speaking with zero evidence, but I would say most Australians don’t care that people gay, but take issue with the contrived manner in which they present themselves. I mean really, the lisp, the flailing mannerisms, it’s all learnt behaviour to separate your subculture. As long as this continues, you’re going to be just that, a subculture like goths, emos and lads.

As for your little taxation bullshit, I pay tax for people’s children as well, but that’s just your DUTY, it’s part of being in a functioning society. It’s also the “breeders” that gave birth to you. You’re the reason your subculture is still considered separate, you use terms like “breeders” to further separate yourself. Absolutely moronic & counter productive.

Liz says:

11:44am | 04/03/11

It is time to get this public display of immodest behaviour back in the stadium and off the public streets supported by tax dollars. Having to one of these in my ignorant youth, I would like peace and calm returned to our streets.

Cloud Strife says:

11:46am | 04/03/11

And what ‘digusting’ behaviour is that, Tim? A parade? Floats? Does Moomba have the dame ‘disgusting’ behaviour?

HappyCynic says:

11:50am | 04/03/11

What disgusting behaviour?

Please provide specific examples.

Personally I think it’s a great event (and I’m straight) because for one night you can go out partying and drinking and all the stupid thugs who normally go out looking for a fight stay home because they’re afraid of expressing their sexuality

LauraBoBaura says:

12:00pm | 04/03/11

Disgusting behaviour? Pshhh. Mardi Gras is fantastic (I’m straight) - as Happy Cynic said, it’s a great night to go out in Sydney, because the dickheads stay home & whinge about how they can’t go out for fear of being converted by a bunch of gays

LauraBoBaura says:

12:01pm | 04/03/11

@Liz - It isn’t the fifties love. Bring on the immodest behaviour I say!

Zeta says:

12:13pm | 04/03/11

I got sour news for ya jack - masked orgies happen even when it’s not mardi gras. Disgusting behaviour happens every year, we just don’t invite you.

Emma says:

12:16pm | 04/03/11

Tim - speaking from my own experiences, the majority of ‘disgusting’ behaviour at Mardi Gras is seen in those who’ve had way too much to drink (regardless of their orientation). At Mardi Gras a few years ago, I witnessed a teenage boy (under the influence of something or other) try to glass the horse of a mounted police officer. I doubt he was out that night consciously celebrating the freedom to love who you choose, regardless of gender. What I’m saying is, one can’t just blame the LGBT community for everything that happens at Mardi Gras, because so many people simply use the parade as an excuse to have a big night out. You could instead try blaming an entrenched cultural dependance on drinking (in particular, binge drinking) to have a good time.

Kika says:

12:21pm | 04/03/11

I agree with Tim. If it were a straight pride parade, and their were people walking around in S&M gear and proudly displaying their heterosexuality ANYWAY they like, it would be banned.

Yes, be proud of who you are. And I fully grasp that our culture is completely dominated by heterosexuality everywhere you look.  I understand and support the concept of Mardi Gras but to me it’s like “Ho hum.. yeah yeah.. you’re here and queer. So? You said that long time ago”

BSM says:

12:21pm | 04/03/11

@Zeta now now,its nice to share with others

Tim says:

12:41pm | 04/03/11

Zeta,
I’m in to it, but not in public.
I might invite you to one of our next orgies if you’re lucky. Although you will have to provide a photograph to prove you’re not Fugly.
As for specific examples of the disgusting behaviour:
Public nudity
Public drunkeness
Open drug taking
General Anti social behaviour (like Emma has suggested)
Hypocritical Bigotry.

Now I don’t mind a few of these things in moderation but not in public when you’re being funded by the government and closing down the entire city centre.

Joan says:

12:52pm | 04/03/11

Yep….well past its use by date…...men dressed up as old tarts in all forms , jock straps up their spray tanned arses all so passe now ,,, dontcha know Darlings ! Dontcha know marriage and having babies is THE in thing. now .. Elton now a daddy probably wouldn’t be caught dead near Mardi Gras.  And as for Cloud Strife .... hey you better come down to earth…. if you can’t tell the difference between Moomba Pde and Mardi Gras.. have a closer look and if you still can’t tell the difference ... go check your eyesight you neeed it and you shouldn’t be driving a car.

Bounce says:

12:57pm | 04/03/11

For a community that are on the verge of enjoying marriage for life and the raising of children in wedlock - the mardi gras as the defining event of the gay community is no longer appropriate.

Don’t you want to show the straight community that you can provide a wholesome environment for the raising of children?

Missy says:

01:02pm | 04/03/11

Ho hum Kika.. ever heard of Sexpo? and what makes you think that there aren’t any hetero’s also participating in the parade?.

Although I must say I’m glad you’re over it (although I don’t know why you think anyone else cares whether or not you personally are into/over/above or beyond anything) that just means there is one less closed minded person spoiling it for everyone.

LauraBoBaura says:

01:03pm | 04/03/11

Ah Tim, this must be where you & I differ… I like drugs, nudity and drunkenness…
Minus glassings & violence.

Squeeze the Middle says:

01:06pm | 04/03/11

Disgusting or not.  Isn’t the question to be answered about the level of ‘adult’ content. Gay or straight: content can be adult. Perhaps the issue is that the hetero community is being told to keep adult content out of public view.  Right Melinda Tankard?  Bit hard to justify with this going on.  Because of Mardi Gras, my child saw a very voluptuous woman on TV with nothing more than stars covering up her bits. At 7 in the morning!!  Thanks for the Mel and Koch.

Anyway, isn’t there a fair bit of objectification going on in Mardi Gras?  Or is it only hetero males that objectify. 

Perhaps the indi advocates will get better outcomes for their communities and followers if they get their ducks in a row.

john says:

01:55pm | 04/03/11

@Tim Wow kinda surprised at your view overall and some…..
-Public Nudity…breast feeding in public or some tit on a beach tanning is ok but showing tit is not ok at Mardi-gras on some bilies or floats?
-Public drunkeness is O.K at nearly every pub and night strip in Australia on any night{including glassings} but some drunks at mardi-gras is not?
-Open drug taking is O.K at any concert or large gathering in Australia or even at Maccas but not o.k at Mardi-gras?

Its a enormous party with a very low arrest rate of about 30-15 people a year.

Perhaps its best that you just roll your eyes and show some apathy keeping in mind it brings in about 30 million into a NSW economy.

As for disgusting behavior in public, its always heterosexuals I have seen fornicating on beaches, parties, pubs, cars in car parks, drive-ins and even in my secluded private entrance to my home.

Sad Sad Reality says:

02:47pm | 04/03/11

Laura, don’t get too close to the dykes on bikes then. They have a real men streak.

LauraBoBaura says:

03:02pm | 04/03/11

SSR: A real ‘men’ streak hey? Hehe, don’t tell them about their ‘men streak’, I don’t think they’d appreciate the comparison

cynic says:

04:19pm | 04/03/11

@Missy
Seriously, your comparing a privately funded R rated event, which is fully enclosed and you need ID to enter, to an open street event, that children are exposed to (its even televised on TV for gods sake)? Seriourly get your head out of your a*se.

When Sexpo is public funded, and televised on TV you have something to compare until then see the G&L Mardi Gra for what it is, an obnoxious display that should be behind closed doors.

I have a couple of gay friends who feel the same. Honestly if there was a ‘straight’ mardi gra like the G&L one I would be just as much in objection. This stuff is meant for private, not down the main street of a city almost naked dry humping each other.

Missy says:

05:02pm | 04/03/11

Ah yes Cynic of course how could I have forgotten the children, do you use that use children when you want other things you don’t like banned? As for the “I have a couple of gay friends” line, really? Is that like the “I’m not racist cause I have a black friend line”?

Move along - nothing to see here says:

07:29pm | 04/03/11

@ Bounce…... “the mardi gras as the defining event of the gay community is no longer appropriate.
Don’t you want to show the straight community that you can provide a wholesome environment for the raising of children?”

I fully agree with this sentiment. I’ve always cringed at the flouncing gays and butch lezzo stereotypes that have been a hallmark of the parade. I think society is mature enough to know that the tool of exaggeration to get attention and to break down barriers has been useful - now it just seems very shallow and very redundant.. And now that laws are being drafted in more and more countries that accepts that homosexual households can provide seriously good parenting - isn’t it time to move on and drop the nancy-boy -butch-lezzo shit ?  Self parody has a shelf-life too . Why not move it out of Sydney - rotate it around Aus cities? That might test the real ‘resolve’ of Mardi Gras ( if that resolve genuinely still exists)

sean says:

08:25pm | 04/03/11

Thanks Tim for your one eyed homophobic view and How do you now what goes on to call it disgusting behaviour,We are still fighting for the same rights as you straights..and until that happens it cannot be dated,its still a protest parade and will remain so until we have the same rights…Its the media who are trying to turn this event into something else..

Sad Sad Reality says:

01:49pm | 05/03/11

Sean, thanks for throwing in that word, much like racism, which is purely designed to stop debate through shaming. Being revolted by the display at the Mardi Gras does not make one homophobic. Not all criticism arises from a basis of fear. Thinking you’d rather not see the hail damaged hairy bum hanging from the leather chaps of some trashed late-40s scene queen is just common sense. I thought such behaviour was classified “indecent exposure” and thus not permissable in civilized society. But, you know, rationalise as you see fit.

James says:

01:30pm | 06/03/11

As an openly gay man, to me mardi gras represents everything I hope people don’t think of when they realise that I am gay.  This freedom of expression really does perpetuate gay stereotypes -  stereotypes that undermine our push for equal rights, marriage, adoption, access to IVF etc.  I completely understand much of the general community’s reticence to allow gay people to adopt children if the over-the-top people marching down the Oxford street once a year is a true representation of the average gay person.  Like most people (gay/straight or whatever) I want to be taken seriously and respected as a positive, credible contributor to society.  I want, and deserve all the same rights that everyone else has.  It seems mardi gras is seen by too many participants as an opportunity to be as outrageous and sexed up as possible which only serves to give the majority of mainstream gay people a bad name.  I’m just glad it’s no longer on tele ... and it really should be hived off to a sporting arena and turned into a festival type party like other music festivals.

Squeeze the Middle says:

01:01pm | 07/03/11

@ john.  Agree with you on the drink and drugs.  But breast feeding and bathing (sun and sea) are functional. Dancing topless in public at night? What does that say? Can a street or stage performer at the St Kilda festival or Melbourne’s Fringe Festival do the same?

Sorry my friend, but the law needs to be consistent on this if you want to claim any moral high ground. That’s politics for you. Do you want individual freedoms and equalty?  Or do want to beat your opponents into submission?  Good luck with the latter because you’ll be feeding the monster that you believe you can subdue.

Gregg says:

02:51am | 05/03/11

@ Marley,
Clean your glasses and re-read
” Mardi Gras today is as much a rite of passage to most queer youth as schoolies is to high-school graduates, as it was for me when I stepped off that bus many years ago. “
and a hint for you ” the rite of passage ” , not the mess that schoolies is, probably far worse than a Mardi Gras in a few locations.

Sad Sad Reality says:

01:12pm | 04/03/11

You’re as camp as the Libyan border with Chad.

Kordez says:

02:14pm | 04/03/11

I thought you were desexed..?

I did Pride (a march) in Brisbane last year and get stuck behind a hairy mid 40’s gym junkie in chaps the whole way. Please wax Zeta..

Bitten says:

04:58pm | 05/03/11

Better arseless chaps than a chapped arse, I suppose…

Personally, I only worry about the rampant rise in chafe-risk from such events. Is there a run on zinc cream after Mardi Gras?

Markus says:

12:20pm | 04/03/11

“but i still might go down with my camera”
What you do in your personal life is none of our business!

TChong says:

03:53pm | 04/03/11

LOL markus, very funny!

Markus says:

12:17pm | 04/03/11

I’ve always wondered this myself.
Many people after coming out of the closet talk about having felt pressured to act a certain way to fit in.

Surely the huge amount of gay guys around who still love to sink piss, watch footy and have never uttered the word ‘fabulous’ in their life would feel even more uncomfortable with this new expectation to suddenly start wearing neon and leather, and talking with a lisp?

hot tub political machine says:

02:24pm | 04/03/11

This is very interesting question to me too. As the two gay guys I know, one is very blokey and the other is quite camp. I often wondered if the camp thing was a cultural thing - like how black shirts is a cultural thing for rockers.

Is being camp something just a lot of gay guys do or is it something a lot of gay people adopt as part of gay culture?

Super D says:

02:56pm | 04/03/11

Adam you sound like most of the gay men that I’ve come across who have serious relationships with same sex partners yet are as disgusted by the sauna scene as Fred Nile.

Turns out that for most gays there is a lot more to being homosexual that just anonymous buggery just as for most heterosexuals there is a lot more to life than one night stands.

AdamC says:

04:36pm | 04/03/11

SuperD, I agree. I think one of the differences, though, is that promiscuity and exhibitionism have become culturally associated with gay men.

Markus and Hot Tub, I don’t know the answer to that. I don’t think there is pressure for gay men to act a certain way, as such, but there are, for want of a better word, role models.

move on ....nothing to see here says:

07:41pm | 04/03/11

yep - it’s becomemore a relic of narcissism then what was originally intended.
What’s new?

Cloud Strife says:

12:46pm | 04/03/11

No, it’s not. I find your close minded bigotry disgusting, and you don’t keep that behind closed doors. And neither should you have to - we live in a free country.

Sad Sad Reality says:

01:14pm | 04/03/11

Tim, you receive the most flack when you’re over the target. Keep up the excellent work.

Sad Sad Reality says:

01:21pm | 04/03/11

Cloud Strife, Tim isn’t closing down a main street in your city to rub his honesty in your face and demand you embrace it. He’s just expressing himself, which I thought was the type of freedom homosexuals like to celebrate once a year. What’s that? You’re a hypocrite?

Cloud Strife says:

02:39pm | 04/03/11

@Sad Sad Reality

Tim doesn’t have to, because heterosexuality and cissexuality is everywhere you look.

The LGBTQ community gets one night a year, why does Tim have a problem with this?

Sad Sad Reality says:

03:19pm | 04/03/11

Cloud Strife, that’s not a deliberate ploy to shame homosexuals. It just happens to be the best way to market to heterosexuals, you know, the majority of society. It makes good sense to make the greater majority of advertising, media, events etc cater to the majority where the money is. For further information, read an economics book. 

I only have a problem with the grotesque nature of the event, not what it stands for. Freedom. Great. Equality. Yep. Right on. Simulated sex acts in the middle of a Sydney street? People dressed in an embarrassing array of ludicrously revealing S&M gear? No thanks.

Seanr says:

12:21pm | 04/03/11

I thought that’s what Schoolies was for?

Kika says:

12:23pm | 04/03/11

Don’t forget the men and women simulating s-x on each other and wearing ridiculous costumes etc.

AdamC says:

12:40pm | 04/03/11

Kirsty, great idea. However, I worry that, with chicks chucking birth control devices around ‘manly’ men butching it up in wifebeaters, your anti-Mardi Gras may be quite indistinguishable from the actual Mardi Gras.

Kirsty says:

12:44pm | 04/03/11

@ Seanr:my mistake I didn’t go to schoolies so missed all of the hullabaloo.

Kika- You raise a valid point, of course when parading it is important to be oiled up and wearing things most people only see in a fetish shop whilst doing things that most people keep behind closed doors.

Cloud Strife says:

12:56pm | 04/03/11

Look around you - hetero and cissexual is already everywhere.

Kirsty says:

01:01pm | 04/03/11

Touche AdamC.  The more we try to differentiate ourselves from one another the more similar we become.

Chaps says:

01:51pm | 04/03/11

You celebrate hetrosexuals every day. When there is a marriage, when you reach out and hold your partners hand in public. Gay men and women can not do these things. We can not celebrate our love publicly in all places in Australia without being stared at.
Happy MG, party safe and be GAY

Sad Sad Reality says:

02:45pm | 04/03/11

Chaps, anything out of the ordinary draws attention. I thought you’d be flattered. Isn’t that what the Mardi Gras is about? Look at me!

Bilby says:

02:59pm | 04/03/11

Chaps - After 20 years together, my partner (now wife) doesn’t get called my “friend” by our dad like my sister’s does either. Despite everything I hate about it, to you I say “enjoy”.

Wayne Kerr says:

03:21pm | 04/03/11

A couple of years ago I travelled to Sydney and back home via train on a Mardi Gras night.  The train , there and back, was full of drunk staright kids.  Seems to me Mardi Gras has little to do with Gays nowadays and is becoming a more mainstream event for the kiddies to get trashed at.

Gregg says:

11:13am | 05/03/11

Kirsty,
You ought to go to the footy and especially finals time of the AFL and RL for great celebrations by males and females and no doubt probably a good sprinkling of different sexual preferences in the crowds.

But the real reason you do not need your own celebratory party is that life itself is a celebration, more so if you’re hetro and still you only need to read some of the responses here to see that there is much homophobia still about and no wonder there’ll be many still questioning how open is it out there if they open the closet door.

And so as well as Mardi Gras being party time, if it helps in some ways to create greater openess, so be it.

Andrew says:

01:52pm | 06/03/11

Kirsty – I’ve often wondered what mardi gras would be like if everyone in it was like me ... gay, but not an outrageous, mincy, lispy, leather wearing S&M cross dressing nudist sexual exhibitionist. I consider myself a pretty mainstream person.  I’m openly gay but don’t feel the need to announce my sexual preference to everyone I meet.  I don’t try to act straight, I’m just me and people can assume one thing or another about me, doesn’t worry me.  I wear wife beaters and even the odd flanny so I reckon a parade full of gay people like me would even more boring than it is now,  ... just like a hetero one would be.

Squeeze the Middle says:

01:09pm | 07/03/11

@Chaps. And how is MG going to help get you what you want?

Luke says:

03:01pm | 07/03/11

@Chaps: “You celebrate hetrosexuals every day. When there is a marriage, when you reach out and hold your partners hand in public. Gay men and women can not do these things. We can not celebrate our love publicly in all places in Australia without being stared at.”

I call bullshit on that. With the exception of marriage (which I think the majority of the Australian public agrees should be changed to fully recognise same-sex unions), people are pretty much free to express their sexuality in most places in Australia without being looked down upon. There may be looks of curiosity, but I doubt of hate or disgust.

I think that anyone who says that Mardis Gras is an effort to improve acceptance of the LGBT community into the mainstream is having themselves on. Using a single, overtly-flamboyant, overtly-sexualised event to do so is like trying to open a door with a sledgehammer. If the LGBT members of the community just started showing affection as they wanted, when they wanted and with who they wanted, like a normal everyday thing, the mainstream community would completely accept, integrate and embrace it. Don’t kick in the door without trying the handle.

Danny B says:

01:51pm | 04/03/11

He’s not me, by the way.

Bryndal says:

02:05pm | 04/03/11

@Daniel - “Did the Gay and Lesbian community ever think that maybe kids in rural areas whom are struggling to cope with their sexuality and are being bullied because of the stereotype that the Mardi Gras perpetuates?”

Yes - better to just hide away - back into the closet with you.

I have atttend Mardi Gras several time from the mid 80’s and it has certainly changed but to label everyone as a stereotype is ridiculous. It is the diversity of the Gay community that is on show.

Besides what is the problem with people having fun on the streets. I think there are a number of government sponsored ‘parades’ which cater for Mainstream society (ANZAC, St Patricks Day, Footy finals etc. - let the freaks have a go! Or do they scare you?

PS - I am straight, not that I have a problem with that.

Sad Sad Reality says:

02:50pm | 04/03/11

Bryndal, you just compared ANZAC day with Mardi Gras. Such comparisons should carry with them a custodial sentence.

Markus says:

02:51pm | 04/03/11

“It is the diversity of the Gay community that is on show.”

I can’t say I remember the ‘non-promiscuous office workers who happen to be homosexual ’ float. Was that right before all the guys in pink neon undies and fairy wings, or just after the Dykes on Bikes?

Daniel B says:

02:53pm | 04/03/11

@Bryndal,

I don’t want anyone to hide away, or as you put it “back in the closet”
Quite the opposite, I want the Gay and Lesbian community to be free to be themselves without fear of prejudice, and to have the same rights as heterosexual couples.

However, what worries me is two fold, that:

1) The Parade wrongly reinforces a negative stereotype to the ignorant homophobic masses that all in the Gay community are Drag Queens and the like.

2)That it unnecessarily segregates the heterosexual and homosexual community.

I think we can safely assume that the Mardi Gras isn’t going to convert or convince homophobes in the slightest.
I didn’t label everyone a stereotype, I said I was concerned that ignorant people would perceive the march as a confirmation of their perceptions of the Gay community.

There is no problem with having “fun on the streets” at all.
I have enjoyed the parade in previous years and will continue to do so, but it isn’t significant / poignant like the days when homosexuality was illegal or subsuqent years, they are a community that are (largely) out and proud.
And please do note mention the Anzac march in comparison.

LauraBoBaura says:

04:16pm | 04/03/11

SSR - don’t be daft. He didn’t compare Mardi Gras to ANZAC parades, he was commenting that we have different parades for different demographics within society, which we do, don’t we?
Thanks for playing though..

LauraBoBaura says:

04:17pm | 04/03/11

SSR - don’t be daft. He didn’t compare Mardi Gras to ANZAC parades, he was commenting that we have different parades for different demographics within society, which we do, don’t we?
Thanks for playing though..

move along....nothing to see here says:

07:52pm | 04/03/11

Bryndal says…“let the freaks have a go!”

that’s the essence of alot of the counter-argument here.

It’s not freakish to be gay anymore - at least in Sydney (but it’s a grand money-spinner)

Sad Sad Reality says:

02:16pm | 05/03/11

LBB, that’s exactly what he did. He said the gay Mardi Gras is the equivalent of the state sponsored parades straights enjoy, like remembering our war dead. What a vile, disgraceful comparison to make. On the one hand you have elderly warriors marching to remember the mates they lost, and on the other, a group of almost naked hedonistic princesses in fairy wings munching handfulls of pills and readjusting butt plugs. The comparison is an insult to any Australian that has served. 

Thanks for not understanding what context means.

Lights, Camera, Action. says:

11:27am | 06/03/11

Yes Daniel, the80’s and 90’s were the time of the great Mardi Gras. It was non political. It was an expression of the community, to promote their community.  Their international guests, costumes,floats, and themes were amazing.We all went to their clubs, great people, great music, great times.
When Clover Moore became an Independent and latter Mayor of Sydney, the allocation of money and direction of the Mardi Gras changed and now has become repititious political bias - it has lost the plot about the community, it is now a dressed up activist march.

Bryndal says:

12:08pm | 07/03/11

@ SAd SAd - Just making the point that there are plenty of gov sponsorted activities for Main stream society. I have no problem comparing ANZAC to the Madis Gras. Many are celbrating the their gay brothers and sisters that have died during the fight for equality.
@DB - did you not notice the large number of ‘Friends of Gay’ groups - I didn’t see tghem segregate from the rest of the parade. - Life savers, Zoo workers, Police Army all had their gay members & their friends. See reasioning for ANZAC reference above.
@Move along…. Joke Janice - I was using the term ‘Freaks’ as an endearment. Some of the straighest people I have meet were gay. Sorry if I offended

progressivesunite says:

02:31pm | 04/03/11

If you were gay and walked down the street holding your same-sex partner’s hand in a regional or rural area, you could well be bashed half to death. Just sayin’

LauraBoBaura says:

02:37pm | 04/03/11

They’d probably also nick you for indecent exposure if you were gay and walked down the street in a pair of arseless chaps in December.

What’s your point?

Tim says:

03:12pm | 04/03/11

@progressivesunite,
walk around Toowoomba wearing an “I Love Flood” t-shirt and you could well be bashed to death too.
What’s your point?

Sad Sad Reality says:

03:13pm | 04/03/11

PU, I don’t see how your point relates to mine. You can be bashed just about anywhere for just about anything, especially in The Cross.

LBB, one rule for the minority. One rule for the majority. That’s my point. It’s not indecent exposure tonight because you’re gay and you get special privileges the rest of society are denied even though they pick up the bill each year. What a joke.

LauraBoBaura says:

03:34pm | 04/03/11

SSR - are you actually offended by seeing a man’s bum? Or are you just just feinging outrage for the sake of it? (You know there’s naked girls too right?) There’s also scantily clad straight people aswell…

Who cares man, it’s a good night out for gay/bi/straight people, if you don’t like it, don’t go & don’t watch it.. society is full of double standards..

Sad Sad Reality says:

04:10pm | 04/03/11

“society is full of double standards..”

Only for minorities.

Just saying is all says:

04:54pm | 04/03/11

@LBB.  “Who cares”. Simple answer - I do. If I wanted my tax dollars paying for a minority to blatantly ignore the law re exposure and to legally close down the city centre for an evening I am sure there are other causes I would choose over Mardi Gras. Maybe a legalise heroin parade with the pushers handing out heroin on the night not having to worry about being arrested. I mean, wasn’t buggery still a crime at the time of the first MG. This might be a way of getting heroin legalised….

LauraBoBaura says:

05:01pm | 04/03/11

SSR: Bring in a hetero Mardi Gras then! Start organising.. until then get over it & stop playing the ‘poor hard done by majority’ card… it’s crap, you’re only as hard done by as you make yourself out to be.

Jade says:

11:47am | 05/03/11

@SSR - Clearly you have never been at a rodeo or BNS ball in rural Australia when Eagle Rock is played. Boys drop trow and girls expose their breasts and nary an arrest is made. And @Just Saying, most of these events are publicly funded in part.

The point, SSR that PU made is that by engaging in a behaviour that is perfectly acceptable in opposite gender couples, gay couples experience genuine persecution.

I have seen more disgusting, indecent behaviour at BNS balls than I ever have at gay clubs or in Mardi Gras telecasts. The difference is the one the media chooses to focus on. Funny how it is the event celebrating homosexuality, not heteronormativity isn’t it?

Sad Sad Reality says:

02:18pm | 05/03/11

“it’s crap, you’re only as hard done by as you make yourself out to be.”

Sentiments I echo to the gay community, eliminating the need for this gross event.

Sad Sad Reality says:

02:23pm | 05/03/11

BNS balls? That all you’ve got Jade? Where do they take place? In a giant privately rented hall perhaps? And the Mardi Gras?

I don’t care about the sick things gays get up to behind closed doors, I just don’t want to see it in the middle of the street.

So go try to sell BNSphobia somewhere else.

Jade says:

11:45am | 07/03/11

@SSR - BNS Balls are usually conducted in an open area such as a school oval, showgrounds, or town commons. They’re all very public, very open areas. And from about midday onwards, the openly visible sex, drinking, and general nudity that abounds is not something I think should be openly visible to the public.

I have no phobia about BNS balls. I’m simply pointing out that the kinds of behaviour you abhor in the gay community’s open display happen quite regularly and quite a lot more openly in some sectors of the heterosexual community. I personally don’t enjoy walking past a girl getting spitroasted on the ground in broad daylight in the middle of a rural showground carpark. And that’s just one example of the disgusting behaviour I’ve witnessed.

LauraBoBaura says:

03:05pm | 04/03/11

I wish those things happened in my local straight bar! ... but as for the ‘test coming back positive’ - No glove, no love SSR.

john says:

03:16pm | 04/03/11

@Sad Sad Reality… yes it does, its cheaper to get a flight to asia e.g thailand and go bug chasing there in a meth-fed orgy with ANYTHING you want in their local straight bars. You can seed or get seeded, our medical system here will then treat you. You don’t have to struggle with names you can’t even pronounce.

Your suggestion of a 20 person bar here are at least licensed SOS{sex-on-site} premises and supply safe sex condoms etc. and there is only a handful of them in Australia.

Sad Sad Reality says:

03:38pm | 04/03/11

LBB, you want bug chasing in your local bar? You should be locked up.

John, I was talking about Australia. And I haven’t heard about the large section of the straight community scrambling to catch HIV. Homosexuals however. I don’t really care what happens behind closed doors, but don’t pretend the gay community don’t have a whole underground lexicon and laundry list of practices the greater public would find troubling to say the least. And don’t pretend safe sex is the norm in the gay community. The disproportionate levels of HIV prove otherwise.

Zaf says:

03:50pm | 04/03/11

“meth-fed bareback orgies”

Waaaaaaaaaaaaait just a minute.  Are you Bill Heffernen?

LauraBoBaura says:

04:08pm | 04/03/11

SSR: Lol… okay, maybe minus the bug chasing…

john says:

08:03pm | 04/03/11

@Sad Sad Reality…your way off the mark, in the year 2011 the gay community has gone online and in the last 2 years a dramatic change in world wide phenomenon where its gone online in a very individualist way by way of GPS, see link below:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grindr

You may be happy to know that gay men have become almost invisible and the majority now live in a bubble and by GPS associate with other selective individuals within proximity.

Your comments about meth infested orgies and the like are ghosts of the distant past, gay saunas clubs are now obsolete where you may find and old politician lurking. Most have gone into decline and disrepair, many gay hotels/etc have closed down or cater mainly for tourists.

john says:

08:08pm | 04/03/11

@Sad Sad Reality “Bug chasing” is such a 1990’s term.

In last few years its known by Gen X & Y as your either a “Gift Giver” or “Blood Seeker”.

Sad Sad Reality says:

05:40am | 05/03/11

‘In last few years its known by Gen X & Y as your either a “Gift Giver” or “Blood Seeker”. “

Way to prove me wrong J-man. Can we agree on one thing? This behaviour makes one mentally ill?

john says:

11:13am | 05/03/11

@Sad Sad Reality @ “This behaviour makes one mentally ill? ” I’m more disturbed by bestiality… those poor animals, and with pedophilia, usually performed by straight men, there is alot worse out there than focusing on a historical conduct of meth-fed consenting male adults having sex with each-other, gay culture has moved on about a decade ago into more main stream society that suffers from marriage, family pressures and divorce like everyone else. Mardi-gras is just an excuse for Sydney to have a party.

I think you may be too focused with the issue and your judgement of it. If your happy with your sexual boundaries then that’s fine, some people dont cope well thinking outside those boundaries. In this instance its best to take up a past time like knitting or long walks in the park with a pet.

I would agree “each to their own” and they have to live with the consequences of their actions.

Sad Sad Reality says:

02:42pm | 05/03/11

“I would agree “each to their own” and they have to live with the consequences of their actions.”

Like jail time. Knowing transmitting HIV is against the law.

john says:

04:37pm | 05/03/11

@ Sad Sad Reality
-’ Like jail time. Knowing transmitting HIV is against the law.’.......... fair enough….....
......however, those that come back from overseas with a swine flu or other flu or viruses, and kill about 2,000-3,000 Australians every year?

Since 1987 6,776 people have died from AIDS, in the same time frame about 57,000 have died from FLU., and another ~50,000 by road crashes and ~50,000 from suicide in the same time frame.

Howard getting rid of guns was useless and a political stunt, Australians kill each-other or themselves in other-ways.

Quarantine is a thing of the past, these days its Russian roulette, when exiting your front door.

...that my friend is the sad sad reality.

Sad Sad Reality says:

02:41pm | 04/03/11

I noticed you left stylish, cultured and cool out. Excellent honesty.

progressivesunite says:

02:33pm | 04/03/11

I love your comment : )

Debs says:

04:07pm | 04/03/11

Beautifully said Gladys, I agree with you 100%.

I’m straight, but that just means I love a husband instead of a wife.  Love is found in all sorts of places, and where it is doesn’t devalue what it is. 

I’ve never been to MG (would love to!), but we did go to a Pride parade in Perth a couple of years ago… We went out for dinner, not knowing it was on, stayed for the parade and had a ball!!! 

Bring on the party!!

john says:

02:55pm | 04/03/11

@ TCB 24 X 7
many gay people live alone, many are professionals, and for some its a reason for them to live to be with a partner. Many only have each-other to turn to. For a the majority of gays life is hard enough for them already and are just trying to find their way in the journey of life, -just like you.

Let-it-be-what-may.

AdamC says:

03:10pm | 04/03/11

Miles, that’s a load of crap, frankly.

There is no heterosexual mardi gras because straights didn’t have their party crashed by bigoted cops in the seventies and get beaten up. (Read the article again.) And how does the fact that there isn’t a heterosexual mardi gras mean we are getting ‘special treatment’?

I, for one, wouldn’t give a flyer if there was a heterosexual mardi gras. Why don’t you start one? I think you will find the ‘outcry’ from the gay community is rather muted.

You are coming up with spurious persecution fantasies in order to rationalise your prejudices.

MissMena says:

03:18pm | 04/03/11

SEXPO???? The parade is the culmination of the festival, just remember that. And that’s a mighty large assumption there that all of the gay community would have an issue with a Hetro Mardi - I doubt anyone but the asshats (and EVERY community has those) would care..

Sad Sad Reality says:

04:07pm | 04/03/11

“I think the more people in society who get to know their gay neighbours, colleagues and family members, the less likely that they would be to think of them as people they could be negative towards or as different.”

BS. The more the average person gets to know about the real goings on of the gay community, the more they will realise it is a haven for incredibly irresponsible sexual and social behaviour. Once an average person gets their head around the miscellany of bears, twinks, bug chasers, crystal queens etc etc they begin to realise the gay community isn’t as wholesome or comparable to their own lives as “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy” would have them believe.

Sad Sad Reality says:

04:07pm | 04/03/11

“I think the more people in society who get to know their gay neighbours, colleagues and family members, the less likely that they would be to think of them as people they could be negative towards or as different.”

BS. The more the average person gets to know about the real goings on of the gay community, the more they will realise it is a haven for incredibly irresponsible sexual and social behaviour. Once an average person gets their head around the miscellany of bears, twinks, bug chasers, crystal queens etc etc they begin to realise the gay community isn’t as wholesome or comparable to their own lives as “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy” would have them believe.

Sad Sad Reality says:

04:07pm | 04/03/11

“I think the more people in society who get to know their gay neighbours, colleagues and family members, the less likely that they would be to think of them as people they could be negative towards or as different.”

BS. The more the average person gets to know about the real goings on of the gay community, the more they will realise it is a haven for incredibly irresponsible sexual and social behaviour. Once an average person gets their head around the miscellany of bears, twinks, bug chasers, crystal queens etc etc they begin to realise the gay community isn’t as wholesome or comparable to their own lives as “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy” would have them believe.

LauraBoBaura says:

04:42pm | 04/03/11

SSR -  That’s absolute BS and you know it. What about all the things straight people do?  There’s a lot about the sexual relationships of straight people that are by no means ‘wholesome’ - you cannot judge someone on their sexual fetishes, as long as it’s safe & consensual, what business is it of yours? I’m sure you’re into something that I might find not entirely wholesome, but if it gets you off & it’s consensual, all power to you.

AdamC says:

07:03am | 05/03/11

SSR, I agree that, in the gay community, risky sexual behaviour is more common than it is among straights. However, the nomenclature you describe in your comment is really more gay porn than gay reality. And I don’t really see why you should be personally offended by liberated sexual mores of gay men. (Jealousy?)

However, I do think the Mardi Gras celebrates these increasingly dated gay norms of exhibitionism and promiscuity, rather than a more rounded view of things.

Sad Sad Reality says:

02:00pm | 05/03/11

“you cannot judge someone on their sexual fetishes”

LBB, what if that fetish extends to sex with children? Of course you can judge people on their fetishes, it is an indicator of the mental health of the person.

LauraBoBaura says:

09:55am | 07/03/11

SSR - I said safe and consentual. That does not extend to paedophelia.
So this ‘sex is a indicator of mental health’ thing, how does it work? Is there a formula that decides - ‘Nope, that’s a bit kinky, you must be sick in the head’ Or, ‘Yep that’s normal sex, you’re a normal person’... what a load of crap.

ben says:

03:59pm | 04/03/11

How utterly meaningless…

It’s legal in many workplaces to sack someone for being gay - would you cop that?

St. Michael says:

12:14am | 05/03/11

@ Ben: actually, it’s not legal.  Go and have another read of the end of the Fair Work Act 2009 and see what happens when you sack someone on the basis of sexual orientation.

Possibly the only ones where it *wouldn’t* result in a finding of unlawful dismissal and a big $33,000 fine would be where it’s against the employer’s particular religious doctrines.  Which is to say, gays employed in the Catholic Church where they come out and proud in the workplace (so to speak).  Is that what you’re driving at?

AdamC says:

07:05am | 05/03/11

Ben, that’s paranoid. (Unless you want to work for the Exclusive Brethren or something.)

Persecution fantasies, on either side of the coin, are awfully toxic things.

Sad Sad Reality says:

03:43pm | 04/03/11

Prepare yourself for the hail of melodramatic arrows, Peter.

ben says:

04:03pm | 04/03/11

Peter, you are a sad person.

Imagine the reaction if I greeted my same-sex partner with a kiss on the lips at, say, Liverpool train station. Verbal abuse for a simple gesture you exercise without thinking.

Imagine being an openly gay or lesbian kid in high school…any chance of bringing my same-sex partner to the formal without being abused??

Sad Sad Reality says:

04:18pm | 04/03/11

The pink mafia are really out in force today.

Ben, almost everyone that stands at Liverpool Train Station gets bashed at some point. I don’t see your point.

Yes being an openly gay or lesbian kid in high school is hard. But no harder than being a nerd, drama major or anything else that posits you outside the inner sanctum of high school cool. The different are picked on.

Baal says:

11:08pm | 04/03/11

If that comment is true the police really need to tackle violence at Liverpool station.
Or maybe you are full of shit?

progressivesunite says:

06:00pm | 04/03/11

You’ve hit the nail on the head there : )

Conservative Relativist says:

09:33am | 05/03/11

“everytime I hold my gf’s hand, kiss her in public or hold her waist I am showing Im a hetero man, this would be judged VERY differently if I was with another man”

would also be judged very different if it was still your gf, but you were wearing a clear see through tutu, thong and pink fairy wings
And you and some pelvic thurst witha side of dry humping

Its like the Adam Lambert AMA thing,
Kissing a backup dancer is one thing
Grinding your crotch in their face
on live coast to coast TV, in a timeslot your not even allowed to swear
is another level entirely,
Then he complains it was all cos he kissed a guy
oh please

Jade says:

12:01pm | 05/03/11

JNS I applaud your comment. It captures the issue perfectly! I am utterly disgusted by the large number of males, probably like yourself CR, who when we are out in the city together will cross to the other side of the street to avoid the gay male couple walking along holding hands (interestingly enough, the lesbian and straight couples don’t seem to elicit the same level of disgust). Either that or they feel a need to say something to the couple, or otherwise make it obvious that they are doing something that the man I am with finds disgusting.

Naturally, CR, he would be stared at if he were wearing those things and kissing his girlfriend. He may also be stared at if he was dry humping her in the street. But the likelihood of him getting bashed is minimal.

Joeyjoejoejnr says:

01:18pm | 05/03/11

You have the same rights! If you want to marry… just marry a girl. I can’t marry a boy just like you. I also (thankfully) can’t marry my sister or an animal or a child or multiple wives. Sooooo, if you want to rub out the line in the sand and redraw it… tell me where you want it and why?

OxyTorch says:

04:49pm | 04/03/11

I hope you wear a kneck-to-knee bathing costume to the beach.  Otherwise you’d be flaunting your sexuality.  And that’s more disgusting than discusting.  (It’s still technically the law in South Australia, you know).

Honey says:

04:45pm | 04/03/11

I totally agree with you.

Chi says:

01:03pm | 06/03/11

They already did that.

Markus says:

11:15pm | 04/03/11

“Because of all this I find boys dressing up with wips and chains and slaves grinding around on a float counter intuitive to the “we are normal people too” message that this parade (I assume) tries to send.”
Fantastic sentiment.
If you are trying to establish that you are just regular people like everyone else, why would you think that dressing up like a gimp chained to a big hairy muscle man in arseless chaps would help?

Sad Sad Reality says:

01:57pm | 05/03/11

It’s not about being like everyone else. Gay people loathe straights. The whole thing is a shallow grab for power like anything else. That’s why the parade stil has to go on. And why the floats become more perverse and revolting every year.

Louisa says:

07:23pm | 04/03/11

Which blazer do you think she will wear - the black, the black and white stripes or the purple number

jf says:

01:26pm | 05/03/11

None of the above.

I’m betting the white and black stripes.

Markus says:

11:22pm | 04/03/11

Hi mark,
Cheers for providing some good insight on a question I raised early on above.
Is there ever pressure from parts of the gay community to feel like you should conform to the gay stereotype, defeating a lot of the purpose of coming out to begin with?

Reality Check says:

01:07pm | 05/03/11

Well said Louisa.  The Government has suggested cutting the disability pension to fund the victims. Instead of the money spent on this parade send the money to the victims of the disasters we have had in Australia.  Little girls wear fairy wings and tutus, and you want respect.  Get real.
You talk about Gay pride.  Are you proud of parading half naked down the street and making lurid gestures?
Gay or not it is nothing to be proud of.

Zaf says:

09:19pm | 04/03/11

“How am I going to convince the general population that I deserve to have equal rights and marriage rights because I live just as normally as them”

You deserve to have equal rights because you’re HUMAN.  Moron.

progressivesunite says:

10:54pm | 04/03/11

You sound pretty ashamed of being gay - “love me straight people! I’m just like you - really!” - stop worrying about what they think of you…..

Sad Sad Reality says:

02:09pm | 05/03/11

PU, So now we’re trying to shame our own are we? So the only way LA can be a proud lesbian is to embrace every grotesque indulgence of a group of people taking advantage of an opportunity to rub their irresponsible sexual behaviour in the faces of straights? They have a word for your point of view. Fascism.

Lesbian anonymous says:

11:08am | 06/03/11

Zaf, yes you are right. But, that is simply not the case. I think by showing how I live my life responsibly with my partner, speaks volumes to the population of Australians that don’t understand what being gay and lesbian is about. The last comment, just shows what kind of person you are.

I am not ahsamed of being a lesbian. I am ashamed of what being a ‘Mardi Gras’ lesbian means when most people, who don’t fully understand my lifestyle, think that it means my life is based primarily on SEX, and open sex. My partner and I keep our intimate and sexual goings on private and personal. We are affectionate in public, but do not gyrate and expose ourselves once a year to let the rest of Australia know that we are lesbian.
I am ashamed that what should be my community, does not represent me and my partner. So where do we fit in? We cannot fit into the straight community because we do not have the same rights, and we cannot fit into the wider gay and lesbian community because they represent a community based on sex and other bizarre unnatural things.

I am open about my sexuality with all my friends and family, and when I talk about my partner at work or out and about, I always make sure they know that she is female.

We also try and support gay and lesbian business - we recently stayed in some accommodation run by a lesbian couple. Might I add they didn’t parade around naked…

So, no I am not ashamed to be a lesbian.

And thank you, Sad Sad Reality for understanding my predicament.

RealityCheck says:

03:20am | 06/03/11

Lets just face more facts. Inserting the word “facts” in a statement of lies doesn’t make it true. If you googled Homosexuality in Nature you would know that it’s natural.
Even parrots learn new quotes from time to time. Maybe it’s time you learnt a new one.

mark of sydney says:

10:52am | 05/03/11

Andy I find your remark offensive.I am a Gay Man yet I don’t Celebrate Mardi Gra,BUT I still want to marry my partner.
As for marriage Gay/Straight it should be a Privilage that should be earn’t not just given.
Andy,Hetrosexuals have had their shot at Marriage,You people rave how its Sacred,Then explain “Why do you Hetro’s Abuse it”?
If your not getting divorced with in 2 years,your cheating behind others back,having affairs,wife swapping,swingers clubs.Ive seen alot of married couples that shouldn’t even have the right to breed.Drug addicts,child abusers etc.
Its this Issue that Hetro’s don’t wish ever to talk about.
Hetro’s have had their chance,And they have abused Marriage.The’ve had their shot at it,They set up the Family Court to prove its flopped.
They even abuse it with their drive-through ceromony’s in America,like a McDonalds,where a Fat Elvis Impersonator does the ceromony.
What an Insult to God and to Marriage.

Andy says:

12:58pm | 05/03/11

Dear Mark, yes the institution of marriage is under threat, that is all the more reason that the abhorrent idea of gay marriage be strongly resisted. By all means have a civil union, but keep your hands off the institution that is the foundation for bringing up children.

loxy says:

02:08pm | 05/03/11

Andy what you and a lot of other posters seem to ignore is that there are plenty of straight people who act in so called ‘unsuitable’ ways i.e. wearing flashy clothes, piercings, tattoos, showing a lot of flesh etc but no one classifies all straight people as the same because of how a few act or look. And neither should you or anyone else be judging all gays by what you see in the Mardi Gras.

The sooner this country is rid of ignorant and bigotted people suh as you the better!

Nic says:

12:59pm | 05/03/11

a very good point

James says:

10:01am | 05/03/11

Adam, as a young gay man I came out and started going to some groups and outing organised by my local gay community. I was treated HORRIBLY by these other gay men who I thought would accept me and want some kind of friendship, but they were all into taking drugs, going to the gym 24/7 and being downright bitches.  It has seriously affected me mentally to the point I am unable to have friendships or even a relationship with another man. So dont you DARE come in here and start going on about the bullying young gay men and women have to deal with when our own so-called “community” is too busy advertising promiscuous, unsafe sex, drug use and being downright nasty people to care about some of us normal average gay men who live average lives.

K says:

12:20pm | 05/03/11

That’s your case James, but I’m sure you’ll find that 99% of the time, things happen the way Adam describes it above.

I’m sorry for what happened to you, but the bullying that young gay men and women have to deal with is far more widespread than the type of bullying you recieved.

Adam says:

12:24pm | 05/03/11

James… You post is very strongly worded in what feels like hatred towards me. It is unfortunate that these men treated you badly however, it sounds like you are reflecting this as the entire gay community.
The purpose of my post was to let a teenager know that it does get better. As someone who grew up in a small town and attempted suicide I feel it is my responsibility to let these kids know that there is hope. As with all groups within the community not everyone is perfect and sometimes it takes time to find your niche.

RealityCheck says:

03:04am | 06/03/11

James, unfortunately you are forgetting one major problem. Just as the straight world is divided into many groups. So is the gay world! Gym goers generally like other gym goers, nerds talk better to other nerds, bitches hang out with other bitches.
From what you’re saying I would imagine you got rejected from the a group who are unfortunately rather superficial. But just like in the straight world, the beautiful have their own group. You might want to be part of it, I want to be part of it but it doesn’t mean we will be. The whole idea that you’re gay and they are gay so lets all be best friends is very naive and you need a take a huge reality check.
To be honest I can’t imagine a community group going out of their way to be horrible to another member. Did they call you names? Or just didn’t really take notice of you. Everyone encounters rejection in their lives. Suck it up, let it go!

The Devil says:

09:56am | 05/03/11

Learn to spell God.

John in Alice in Wonderland says:

12:23pm | 05/03/11

Thank you for speaking on behalf of almost 7 billion people. I’d like to know where you got this authority, as I’d like to get some for myself.

loxy says:

01:57pm | 05/03/11

I think it’s you who needs to take a long hard look at yourself as you are anything but tolerant!

DefeatedandGifted says:

04:02pm | 05/03/11

“I like to think that I am a tolerant person”...
So you like to think. 
Because heterosexuals never shove anything down my throat.
It can’t fit with all the heteronormativity I have to swallow.

Spades a Spade says:

04:25pm | 05/03/11

...all those straight people really need to take a long hard look at themselves and their outrageous behaviour…

Chi says:

01:07pm | 06/03/11

Won’t somebody think of the CHILDREN!

As tolerant as say, Peter Madden.

Taxman says:

12:30pm | 05/03/11

Not to mention the fact that by spending 3 million dollars of tax payers money, they are pumping about ten times as much into the local economy.

dingodave says:

01:03pm | 05/03/11

//encourage young people to be gay//
yeah right, like living in a straight world makes gay people straight?? wrong! and even if it were possible so what? unless of course you believe being gay is somehow less than being straight.

//more gay propaganda means more gays, less heteros, more destroyed values.//
gay people destroy values. what values? whose values? specifics please.

//Perhaps we could have a heterosexual Mardi Gras… oops, that would hate speech.//
no it wouldn’t be hate speech. go on, have your straight mardi gras.

// have no problem with gay individuals, but I strongly disapprove of homosexuality as a whole being used as a weapon to destroy this society.//
i have a problem with you. you won’t even admit to yourself you’re homophobic when you clearly are. and one again could you explain with specifics how gay people will destroy society rather than just throwing it out there like it is a foregone conclusion?

G-Town says:

01:55pm | 05/03/11

No straight person can ever be turned gay. If they ‘turn’ gay, then they were always gay and have only just realised it.

Adam Morad says:

08:48am | 06/03/11

That was a massive insult to every single homosexual suicide victim.  I have at times wished nothing more in my life to be straight.  I’ve attempted suicide. I’ve been through long (10+years) bouts of depression over being gay… If someone could could ‘turn’ their sexuality by god it would I would have turned straight by now but I HAVE NO CHOICE being who I am, and because I can’t accept who I am and the way my body/mind is made, my life is a long lonely misery. 

Don’t get me wrong, I still work, I have a mortgage, a car, friends.. you know.. a ‘normal’ life.. but I’ve never been in a relationship, I don’t have sex and probably never will.  Thanks society!!!!!!!

Ben H says:

02:57pm | 06/03/11

You having a problem with me is fine. I have no problem at all with that.

Here is and example: http://www.news.com.au/national/mardi-gras-moment-to-send-message-to-pm/story-e6frfkvr-1226016316114

‘SYDNEY’S streets were covered in every colour of the rainbow as the Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras took off with the gay marriage theme dominating the parade last night.’ - news.com.au

Marriage is a heterosexual institution - a value and milestone crucial to our way of life. These people are fighting a full-scale ideological war against marriage and heterosexuality. They are duped into thinking it’s for ‘equality’.

The media reports it as if they were real activists campaigning for something decent and honourable. The ‘say something campaign’ says it all: Isolate and alienate those that don’t believe in the abomination of gay marriage.

‘Gay marriage will be high on the agenda at the ALP national conference in December.’ - News. The Government has been infiltrated. Julia has an obvious allegiance to the gay and lesbian community outside of her closet.

Gay marriage is not normal or healthy, and is one more example of the direct path being blocked while the one that deviates is celebrated. This is no accident. It’s a deliberate, calculated attack on our way of life.

Ben H says:

03:01pm | 06/03/11

You having a problem with me is fine. I have no problem at all with that.

Here is and example: http://www.news.com.au/national/mardi-gras-moment-to-send-message-to-pm/story-e6frfkvr-1226016316114

‘SYDNEY’S streets were covered in every colour of the rainbow as the Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras took off with the gay marriage theme dominating the parade last night.’ - news.com.au

Marriage is a heterosexual institution - a value and milestone crucial to our way of life. These people are fighting a full-scale ideological war against marriage and heterosexuality. They are duped into thinking it’s for ‘equality’.

The media reports it as if they were real activists campaigning for something decent and honourable. The ‘say something campaign’ says it all: Isolate and alienate those that don’t believe in the abomination of gay marriage.

‘Gay marriage will be high on the agenda at the ALP national conference in December.’ - News. The Government has been infiltrated. Julia has an obvious allegiance to the gay and lesbian community outside of her closet (but the media obviously doesn’t think that’s important, and that the Australian people don’t deserve to know).

Gay marriage is not normal or healthy, and is one more example of the direct path being blocked while the one that deviates is celebrated. This is no accident. It’s a deliberate, calculated attack on our way of life.

Ben H says:

08:42pm | 06/03/11

Many gay people crap on about rights and freedom. But if they had their way, a huge chunk of society wouldn’t have the right or freedom to speak our mind. Unbelievable.

Ben H says:

09:10pm | 06/03/11

‘Homophobia’ is a made up word. People must avoid the PC mindset and self-censorship, and go with what they feel is right.

Sad Sad Reality says:

01:42pm | 05/03/11

Flip the scarf over your shoulder and strut darling.

Sad Sad Reality says:

02:30pm | 05/03/11

Jaming your lifestyle in the faces of people that don’t care is not a path to acceptance.

mark of sydney says:

04:54pm | 05/03/11

No Sad Sad Reality,Were not going to act camp for idiots like u and society to see and want.
We’ll sit back look straight and point at male metro-sexuals with their earings in their right-ears (In the 80,s-90’s this was for gays only) and Streaked hair (Heavens above,is that gay or what ) and colourful clothes and point at you guys instead and laugh,while we keep a eye on your or friends arse and look straight.
You dont even know were sitting next to u in a pub/club/shopping centre etc we play with your head all the time,idiots

Your name: Straight says:

09:11am | 06/03/11

Just being honest with you…. ..because for me it just makes being gay synonymous with being over the top, hedonistic, weird, draq-queenish, and promiscuous….

The parade makes me think that gays & lesbians are weirdos…. Is this really the way a gay wants to be identified first off?

I’m thinking that these kind of parades divide the them and us even more. So for me, this kind of parade entrenches homophobia. Just an opinion.

jasonb84 says:

12:02am | 07/03/11

@ Sad Sad Reality

WOW, another “heterosexual” male who is totally secure in his sexuality, thats why he is obviously not threatened by a gay person.

Seano says:

09:19am | 06/03/11

Yes because Tony Abbott doesn’t feel threatened by gay people at all..oh wait he does.

chucky says:

11:14am | 06/03/11

So leave.

Seano says:

09:13am | 06/03/11

Speaking of genius, welcome to the English language champ. One of the main reasons that English is the dominant language on the planet is that it constantly evolves, adopting words from other languages for various things, often changing the meaning on the way. In English the commonly accepted meaning of the term Mardi Gras is celebration or event.

Jez Trout says:

07:10pm | 05/03/11

Yep, Fat Tuesday. Not Fat Saturday. Mardi Gras on a Saturday night? ‘Nuff said.

chucky says:

09:07am | 06/03/11

Maybe because it’s “a bunch of guys and girls having some fun” at taxpayers’/ratepayers’ expense? I’m sick of the “pumping money into the local economy” line! I live locally, but I don’t own a hotel/restaurant/bar etc., so where’s the direct benefit for ME?!

There are plenty of straight people whose personal sexual preferences differ from what society may deem as “normal”, so WHERE’S their parade at taxpayers’/ratepayers’ expense??? This is simply yet another example of Clover Moore buying votes by pandering to vocal minorities.

Carl says:

10:45am | 06/03/11

Wow. Yeah, because if it comes from an abridged collection of mistranslated faerie tales told by a bunch of Middle Eastern shepherds in the Bronze Age about a cosmic Jewish zombie who was his own father and sent himself on a suicide mission to save humanity from it’s inherent sins because a rib woman ate a magical piece of fruit given to her by a talking snake it must be TRUE…
Yawn…

joeyjoejoejnr says:

07:19pm | 06/03/11

Private sex life? - It’s so private when it’s marching down the street… it’s pretty public then and therefore open to criticism and debate

joeyjoejoejnr says:

07:16pm | 06/03/11

See… here is the problem… what is true equality and who determines it? Why should you get equal rights over say the guy who wants to marry his sister or the guy who wants to marry multiple wives? Where is your line in the sand and why is ok there?

Squeeze the Middle says:

03:35pm | 07/03/11

Chi.  See my response below about toplessness on beaches.

joeyjoejoejnr says:

07:11pm | 06/03/11

Why should it be common? it’s not common - it’s uncommon and unnatural. BUT if it all takes is for you to have an uncommon homosexual representation on home and away… gee that says a lot

joeyjoejoejnr says:

07:12pm | 06/03/11

Why should it be common? it’s not common - it’s uncommon and unnatural. BUT if it all takes is for you to have an uncommon homosexual representation on home and away… gee that says a lot