Marching lesbians 3000 strong

In 1991, Kyle Rae organized the first Gay Pride march in Toronto as a response to violent police raids on gay bathhouses in Metro Toronto. Rae is presently the councillor for Ward 6, the gay ghetto. In a recent article in The Globe and Mail, Rae's politics were discussed. Rae's attitude was hopeful because the gay community has at last been acknowledged by Pepsi and Molson Breweries; these corporations will now openly sponsor events during Gay Pride Week. This year the big corporations were out (so to speak). Various liquor companies have since come out of the corporation closet and are arm wrestling in olive oil as we speak for a piece of the gay positive market. Soon tuna will not only be dolphin friendly but gay positive.

On June 29, 1996, the first annual Dyke Hike was held as a part of Gay Pride Week. It was a smashing success. We met at the 519 community centre and went for a stroll through Metro Toronto. There were approximately 3000 womyn in attendance. The Toronto Rape Crisis Centre led the hike atop a truck and played dance music. The parade walked through the business corridor at Yonge and Bloor. The reflection in the buildings of so many lesbians, gathered together, out and wet and smiling, was downright gleeful. Many lesbians carried video cameras. They recorded the first dike hike for herstory! There were womyn in drag, in leather and bondage rigs, urban trash in vinyl pumps and sleazy shorts, bull dykes and ladies who didn't leave the strap on at home. There were lesbian moms and moms. There were straight ladies and bi sisters. There were youth lesbians, Jewish lesbians, disabled lesbians, granola dykes, Chinese lesbians, Muslim lesbians, lesbians with aids, Christian lesbians, Two Spirited dykes, Southeast Asian lesbians and Mexican lesbians. There were lots and lots o' lesbians. Waterloo lesbians and bisexual womyn were well represented.

The streets were lined with men; happy, gay men with happy signs cheering on the lesbian communities. It was so positive and welcoming. When we went by the Wellesley hospital, AIDS victims greeted us with waves and their lovers held signs of hope and support. It was very moving. The presence of gay/straight/bi/transgendered men on the route was good because it helped deal with some of the criticism directed at the Dyke Hike that it segregated the gay and lesbian community along gender lines. Other men participated in the march by offering child care, lending suits and tuxes, driving a group of lesbians to the hike and holding barbecues after the march. There were a variety of ways to participate that didn't involve marching and all were positive and meaningful. While the media suggested that the lesbians wouldn't come due to the rain, it had the reverse effect and 3000 people showed up. After the march, an outdoor concert was scheduled but was rained out. The Gay Pride parade on Sunday was hot and sunny. It was attended by over 800,000 people. It was a great day. Stickers were passed out that said 'I Work At The Front Of The Store' as a response to the growing racism, sexism and homophobia coming from Canadian government. The parade included a TTC bus called the Transit Triangle playing dance music, a gay float, the gay/lesbian/bi youth line, and a school bus loaded with queer youth. A bus load of sailors went by but we were unable to ascertain if they had strayed onto the parade route or were actually members of the gay community. Their present whereabouts is unknown.

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