It Started with a Rainow & Ended in a Proposal

My oh my what a great weekend I had in DC! The March was absolutely wonderful and I am extremely happy I decided to attend. The weather turned out perfect for the March being in the 70s and sunny. I was there with some of my best friends and my boyfriend. I couldn't have picked better people to go with. It was so important for me to go because equality for the gay community is something I feel very passionate about. Not only do I want to be able to get married and enjoy the same rights as heterosexual married couples, but beyond that, I dont feel as though I should be discriminated against in any way because of the the person who I choose to love.

I do have some gay friends who aren't into the marching, rallying, or have even chosen not to sign a petition to ban work discrimination because they were already protected so it didnt matter to them. This lack of regard for the rest of the GLBT community sort of infuriates me. I want people to understand its not about the individual but about the community as a whole. Just because it may not affect you doesnt mean it wont affect others. Just because one gay man doesnt want to get married doesnt mean you shouldnt support those who do. This type of ideology seems so selfish and dehumanizing.

Alright, onto the details of the march. As soon as we arrived at the March we noticed everyone looking up towards the sky and as we followed suit, we all saw the bright rainbow spanning across the sky. It was bizarre because it did not rain that day and there were very few clouds in the sky. Weird phenomenon I guess.

Due to the weekend being very hectic, I had to make my sign for the march in the subway station while waiting for our train to arrive. Take a look...Semi creative, right?

I tried as much as possible to take in everything I was seeing from the gay couples, the children, the straight supporters, and even the few anti-gay protesters. There was so much hope in the estimated crowd of over 250,000 people. I would notice signs that would make my eyes get a little watery, however, there was one in particular that almost made me break down. Yep. A biracial couple who never exactly what it meant to be discriminated against. But I managed not to cry like the sensitive Mary I really am. This sign just hit me so hard because these people understand. They understand that it was them fighting for the same damn rights which people had restricted them access to using the same religious scriptures and reasons. And although its not their fight anymore, its their human compassion to show their support. I honestly think its people like this who are going to make the biggest difference in the fight for equal rights.

After marching for 2 hours and having my Steelers sign being photographed by other Steeler fans a few dozen times, we arrived at the Capital Building where we listened to heartfelt speeches given by Lady Gaga, Cynthia Nixon from Sex and the City, Dan Choi the fired military man by DADT, as well as many others. All the speeches were pretty amazing even though some were almost inaudible or seemed to drag on a little too long.

After leaving the rally to go back home to rest up a bit, i witnessed something i will never forget. I saw a young gay couple standing next to each other when i noticed one of them get down on one knee pull out a ring box from their pocket, and propose. I saw the nod of approval and they both quickly embraced each other and started crying. this was the first gay proposal I have seen in real life and sadly I wasnt quick enough to pull out my camera to get those few once in a lifetime shots. It was the perfect way to end this day. I couldnt have asked for a better experience with this march and so extremely grateful I had the chance to be apart of it.

Here is the link to the rest of my pictures from the march and rally. **My boyfriend also makes an appearance or two in these for the first time ever. See if you can spot him!
http://picasaweb.google.com/jfbriz/NationalEqualityMarch#

Enjoy!