How Sydney Does Mardi Gras

 

The city was a blur of rainbow flags and neon colors. Feathers, glitter and men dressed as outrageously glamorous women dominated the streets. It was Mardi Gras in Sydney and our group of international students arrived just in time for the celebration. Mardi Gras is traditionally the biggest gay rights festival in all of Australia and the sidewalks and streets were filled like Times Square on New Year’s Eve. We jumped right in and flocked to Sydney’s market to piece together our obnoxiously festive costumes. We decked ourselves out in bright colors, feathered tops, sequins, tacky Australian apparel, face paint, glitter and fancy masks. All of the restaurants brought stands out into the streets to sell food, people waved rainbow flags, dogs walked around sporting colorful beads and supporters held up signs of peace and progress. We all snapped pictures with men walking in heels better than I can and became naturals in the Mardi Gras setting.

Our tour guides warned us to not leave each other or to walk back through the park to get back to our hostel because it is not uncommon for anti-gay right protestors to wait in the park for someone to wander through alone and to attack them. This we all found deeply disturbing and depressing that something so backwards could still occur in this decade. There were police officers at every corner, however, and we luckily did not hear of any reported hate crimes that occurred that night. All we witnessed was love and support.

The parade kicked off with women zooming down the streets on loud motorcycles following annual tradition. People staked out their front row seats hours prior so the view was unfortunately best seen only from someone’s shoulders or from the windows of the second floor of a bar. The parade proceeded on with fabulous performances and costumes that sent a message of peace and equal rights. It was a truly happy celebration as music, food, dancing and singing overtook the city, however, the most notable appearance of all was the overwhelming sense of support and pride by everyone in the parade and in attendance.