Photo by Aimee Plante | The State Press Pride parade participants formed a wall in front of anti-gay protestors at Steele Indian School Park during the 35th annual Pride Parade on Sunday, April 12, 2015.

By Aimee Plante | 04/12/2015 5:49pm

Members of the LGBTQ community and its allies, complete with cheers and rainbows, marched through downtown Phoenix on Sunday to celebrate the city’s annual Pride Festival.

Phoenix’s 35th annual Pride Parade featured more than 2,000 participants who marched from Third Street and Thomas Road to Steele Indian School Park in an effort to create more acceptance for the LGBTQ community in Phoenix.

Shadow Mountain High School student Christian Guzlan said he attended the parade to encourage the public to accept LGBTQ community members.

“It informs the public of what LGBT members are and gives us LGBT members an opportunity to get together and support each other, because a lot of people bully us, and it’s important to let things be happy and hyped,” Guzlan said.

Without events like pride parades, basic information about the LGBTQ community is overlooked, Guzlan said.

“Pride parades are important because a lot of people don’t know what LGBT people are,” he said. “I remember asking some of my friends what they thought being trans* meant, and they said, ‘Oh, isn’t that when you’re born with two parts?’ and I had to tell them, ‘No, it means you identify as another gender.’”

Guzlan participated in the march and held a sign that read, “They say be straight; I say taste the rainbow, b---h.”

“I was most excited to come here with my poster because a lot of people came up to me and said, ‘No, you’re a homo, and that’s not cute,’ but I was just able to have them read my sign and say, ‘Yeah? Whatever,’” he said.

Guzlan said he wants to see a world that is more accepting of the LGBTQ community.

“I think people need to understand that we are real people and that the world is evolving,” Guzlan said. “If you’re afraid of who we are, you should be afraid of the future.”

Phoenix resident Bee Mumford said people at pride parades are likely to understand sexual orientation.

“A lot of people’s misunderstanding comes from a general lack of knowledge,” Mumford said. “So it’s really great to be able to appreciate yourself and be accepted by most people here.”

Phoenix resident Kai Prince, who identifies as asexual and trans*, said there should be more pride parades throughout the year.

“I think it would help every to get to come together more,” Prince said. “It would give themselves more time in the year to celebrate themselves as themselves.”

Prince said pride parades are an opportunity to celebrate individuality.

“I think it’s important for people to know that you should be allowed to celebrate yourself,” Prince said. “You should be able to have fun without worrying about what other people think.”

Reach the reporter at aplante@asu.edu or follow her on Twitter @aimeenplante

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