Sao Paulo prepares for Gay Pride parade
Pastor Dale Morgan
*Sao Paulo prepares for Gay Pride parade*
By Gary Duffy
BBC News, Sao Paulo
The event is expected to draw millions to the city
Organisers of the Gay Pride march in the Brazilian city of Sao Paulo say
they are hoping around three million people will attend events in the city.
The parade is said to be the largest of its kind in the world, second
only to the Rio Carnival in the number of tourists it attracts.
Sao Paulo's Gay Pride will begin along the city's famous Avenida
Paulista in a huge display of colour and noise.
The city's first parade, staged in 1997, attracted just 2,000 people.
This is a long way from the enormous gathering expected later on Sunday.
Gay Pride is taking place just days after around one million Evangelical
Christians held their annual demonstration in Sao Paulo, during which
one minister addressing the crowd linked homosexuality with Satanism.
Serious side
While most people will go to the demonstration to enjoy the floats and
music, there is a serious side to the march as well.
This year's theme is calling for a world free of racism, sexism and
homophobia.
According to activists, between 1980 and 2006 some 2,680 gay people were
murdered in Brazil, the majority thought to have been killed because of
their sexuality.
With more than 70 Gay Pride parades taking place around the country,
there are some signs of changing attitudes, with a few states publicly
expressing opposition to discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation.
However, civil unions between same sex couples are only recognised in
one state in the south of Brazil and change on this issue remains a key
demand of gay rights activists