Madison Wisconsin is Showing Pride instead of cheese
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people still face discrimination, and as an asexual individual, Roger Whitestone can relate to that.
Whitestone, 49, who used a pseudonym to protect his 80-year-old parents who may not understand his sexuality, said that he has always felt a certain kinship toward LGBT people.
That’s why he came to the Madison Pride Parade Sunday with his bike outfitted in solidarity with the gay community.
“We all grew up feeling very different from the rest of society,” he said, noting that asexuals are an even smaller minority than those in the LGBT community but face less discrimination.
“Asexuals don’t like having sex, but it’s such the norm for everybody. Society perceives it as normal to have sex,” Whitestone said, adding that it is often assumed that asexual people were abused, molested or are confronting reproductive medical problems.
“That’s not the case. Sex has always just been unsettling for me,” he said.
He came out Sunday to show the hypocrisy and the “arbitrary nature of the current marriage laws and civil rights laws.”
Almost 60 different groups, with or without floats or vehicles, took part in the parade, which convened at the new Central Park and marched up Williamson Street to Capitol Square. The parade encircled the Capitol and ended at the top of State Street with a rally and live music.
Dozens of businesses, nonprofit organizations and gay bars took part, as well as politicians of all stripes. Law enforcement leaders were also on hand. Dane County Sheriff Dave Mahoney rode his motorcycle at the front of the parade with local members of Dykes on Bikes, a national organization of lesbian motorcycle riders. Police Chief Mike Koval pushed a jogging stroller.
Marchers held signs that read “Love is love,” “Love wins,” and “Marriage equality for all.”
Dane County clerk Scott McDonell marched with Renee Currie and Shari Roll, the first same-sex couple in Dane County to receive a marriage license. The couple married in June after a federal court ruling briefly struck down Wisconsin’s ban on same-sex marriage.
For the first time in its 25-year history, the Madison gay Pride Parade was organized by OutReach, a Madison-based advocacy group for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.
OutReach took over the parade this year after it was canceled last year by its former organizer, Wisconsin Capitol Pride, which cited a lack of money and volunteers.
Steve Starkey, executive director of OutReach, said his group raised about $22,000 to hire about 25 police officers and rent the barricades and equipment necessary for street closure. They also used money to pay for publicity.
The Pride Parade, which since its inception in 1989 has been led by four different organizations, is a very public demonstration of support for LGBT rights, Starkey said.
“We’ve made a lot progress in terms of our rights, but there’s a lot of discrimination,” he said. “There are still laws that need to be changed that give LGBT people equality and the same kind of protection that the general population has.”
Samara Kalk Derby covers events in and around Madison on Sundays. If you have an idea for Around Town, contact her at skalk@madison.com or 608-252-6439.
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