Pride festival ever more popular in Quebec

The cool weather did not dampen the ardor of the festival-goers who offered the event a record crowd Friday night at the place D'Youville, while Michele Richard, Martine St-Clair and five other "divas" were giving themselves show.

On Saturday, several hundred people also came to attend the "turnkey" public wedding that was offered by the festival to a homosexual couple, a first in its history.

The organizers wanted to celebrate the 15 years of the event in an original way, while raising the issue that the federal law allowing for same-sex couples will also be 15 years old soon.

"It's something that is still very little on the planet," Rainbow Alliance president Jerome Bergeron also said.

This anniversary edition of the capital's LGBT + pride festival may end with traffic once again on the rise, its leaders anticipate.

Year in, year out, 35,000 people move to downtown Quebec City during the long holiday of Labor Day to celebrate sexual and gender diversity.

"There is always growth and we had a nice demonstration on Friday night," said Jerome Bergeron. It's constantly evolving, with people from all walks of life, families, young children, grandparents, people from the community and from outside the community, and a lot of tourists too. "

The Rainbow Festival does not pretend to have the dimension of similar events in Montreal and Toronto, and it sees its size more modest as an asset, preferring to bet on its family character and its French roots, says Mr. Bergeron.

"Lifelong parenting, like same-sex marriage, is not always accepted by everyone, so it's something that we also wear," says Bergeron.

The Rainbow Festival will hold a fun-filled family day on St. John Street on Sunday. A market, games for children and animation are on the program.

The solidarity march will begin at 1:30 pm at Place D'Youville.

The Rainbow Festival ends Sunday.