World

Latvia holds first successful gay pride parade

by Kaitlin | June 5, 2007 at 01:11 pm

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UPDATE: Check out this great photoset of the Riga pride parade.

This week's gay pride parade held in the Latvian capital of Riga was the first ever pride parade held in the country not to end in violence or to be banned. Last year's parade in the city saw parade marchers being assaulted and having bottles, garbage and even excrement thrown at them. This year's parade, which was joined by marchers from all over Europe, resulted in no reported incidents of violence. Two anti-gay protesters were arrested for verbal assault of parade goers.

Spanish European parliament member Raul Romeva told Reuters: "The fact we can organise this march this year shows there has been an improvement even if we have to do it in a park."

Politicians from Sweden, Norway, Denmark and the European parliament joined the march.

The marchers brandished placards saying: "Love is a human right," "Equality is a human right," and "No to hatred, we love Latvia."