Taiwan Pride

Taiwan Pride (臺灣同志遊行 Táiwān Tóngzhì Yóuxíng) is the annual gay pride parade in Taiwan. The parade was first held in 2003. Although joined by groups from all over the country, the primary location has always been the capital city of Taipei. The most recent parade, held in October 2015, attracted more than 78,000 participants, making it the largest gay pride event in East Asia, and the second largest in Asia behind the parade in Tel-Aviv, Israel.

Taiwan Pride differs in many ways from gay pride parades held in the USA and Europe. The parade foundation is one example. Western parades often show a divergence between social movements and "commercialization". Some pride parades are financed by corporations targeting gay customers, and sometimes the parade even becomes an advertising venue for the corporations. In some communities the conflict is so great that one parade even separates into two. Taiwan Pride is still primarily a social movement, with little advertisement — there are even complaints that local gay-targeting corporations give too little support to the parade.

Taiwan Pride also differs in the type of parade. A majority of the parades around the world usually take control of the main road, blocking bystanders on the sidewalk. Taiwan Pride share the road with cars, bikes and bystanders, and is subject to regular traffic control. While it is inconvenient and sometimes dangerous for participants, sharing the road without clear separation also blurs the distinction between participants and bystanders, providing a gray zone of participation.

There were several small pride parades before the first formal Taiwan Pride parade in 2003. For example, 300 gays identified themselves in the 1996 parade of The National Women's Coalition. In 2002, some gays publicly protested at the Ministry of National Defence against the practice of forbidding gays from military police service.

The first Taiwan Pride parade was held on November 1, 2003. It was the first one in the Chinese community, and encouraged the gay community in Hong Kong to hold its own parade. Many people in Taiwan didn't notice the parade at all, but almost all electronic and paper media reported the parade.

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