“No union is more profound than marriage, for it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice, and family. In forming a marital union, two people become something greater than once they were. As some of the petitioners in these cases demonstrate, marriage embodies a love that may endure even past death. It would misunderstand these men and women to say they disrespect the idea of marriage. Their plea is that they do respect it, respect it so deeply that they seek to find its fulfillment for themselves. Their hope is not to be condemned to live in loneliness, excluded from one of civilization’s oldest institutions. They ask for equal dignity in the eyes of the law. The Constitution grants them that right.” — Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy
On June 26 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court legalized marriage for same-sex couples. There were celebrations across America as people could finally express their love with the same dignity and civil rights as their heterosexual counterparts. Love has no bounds and the Supreme Court of the United States agreed.
The annual Gay Pride Parade in New York has a distinct unabashed display of sexuality, showmanship and ethereal costumes. These ingredients merge to form a rebellion against a system that suppresses homosexuality. It would be difficult to discuss the Gay Pride Parade without these elements and yet, we must. We must identify and illustrate the ability of our humanity to bind us beyond the power our sexual, racial or political differences possess in separating us. This human experience is shared by all regardless of gender, sexuality or race.
Beneath the costumes and inside the loud cheers, is a resilient strength. Long after the parade is over, the laughter and joys of millions who can love with dignity will continue. We’re lucky to be alive to witness social progress that ensures our world is more united.
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