 "Photo: David J. Olender / Photo Editor")
Two women touting "Just Married" signs saunter through Hillcrest holding hands in front of a sparkling blue float. Tranquil and happy, they pause in front of an enormous crowd for a kiss.
Saturday's 34th annual Pride Parade was identical to last year's, except for one major difference.
For the first time in San Diego's Pride Parade history, a contingent of recently married same-sex couples marched to celebrate their right to wed their long-term partners.
One such couple, Peggy Knapp and Val Pearson, carried a sign declaring that they just married on June 20, 2008.
"After being together for 21 years, getting married is probably a bit of a mixed bag," Knapp said. "It's not as exciting as getting married after a few years of commitment, but at the same time, it's really important to us, emotionally, to be able to say: we are married."
The couple said they made the decision to marry after California's Supreme Court became the second in the nation to approve same-sex marriages in May. They did it not only for their own benefit, but also to be an example to the young gay and lesbian community, Pearson said.
"There is the general misconception that gay and lesbian couples don't stay together very long," Pearson said. "So it's important for the community to see us, especially the younger people."
The celebration boasted a crowd of about 150,000 people, which is estimated to be about the same as last year's group, according to a Pride Parade supervisor at the event. In typical fashion, the infamous "Dykes on Bikes" kicked off the parade on their motorcycles.
This year though, the lesbian motorcycle group led the way adorned in bridal veils. Recently married couples were not the only ones holding signs; a group of proud parents also declared their support.
Lenore Pechi stood on the sidelines with tears brimming in her eyes as the motorcycles rode through the street. She held a sign stating: "We LOVE our Gay Daughters married in the U.K."
"It's time for the parents to come out of the closet too," Pechi said.
The groups did not get to celebrate without opposition. An aggregation of men, who declined to state the name of their group, stood behind a police barricade shouting from a megaphone at parade goers.
"Your behavior is wicked!" shouted group member Paul Franklin into a megaphone from a perch behind the police barricade.
"The backside of a man is an exit, not an entrance!" he continued to yell over the protests of people on the other side of the barricade. "Satan is coming for you to take you to hell!"
Franklin, who protested at the intersection of University and Ninth, said that he is a "street messenger."
San Diego Police Department Captain Walt Vasquez, who oversees special events, said the group comes out every year.
"They work closely with us to advise us that they'll be attending," Vasquez said. "It's no surprise that they're here." Vasquez said that no arrests were made during the Pride Parade and that the demonstration remained peaceful throughout the day.
The parade started at 11 a.m. Saturday at University and 6th Street and continued through the colorful streets of Hillcrest toward Balboa Park.
More than 175 floats and contingents, including political activist groups, gay friendly businesses and politicians and even the SDPD, trekked toward the two-day festival held Saturday and Sunday.
Check out www.thedailyaztec.com for picture slide shows of the Pride Parade.
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