GAY SCHWEIZ

Preparing Zurich for Europride 2009

jugendfrei

2009 brings the Europride to Switzerland. The program with many cultural events will start at May 2 and conclude with the CSD parade weekend as its highlight at June 6. You can find all information on the official site www.europride09.eu

The organisers expect more than 100'000 visitors. Many for little Zurich but quite few compared with the big Europride in Madrid where more than 2 million people joined the parade. Zurich is the biggest city of Switzerland with about 340'000 inhabitants, and its the Swiss city where the most gays live. But where are all these gays at CSD? The biggest Parade was in the year 2007, after the police closed down some gay clubs and forbid the darkrooms. This waked up 20'000 gays to demonstrate on the streets. The other years there were just half of them on the parade because for the majority it seems to be more important to go shopping or spend the sunny afternoon at the lake.

Swiss gays are gentle and friendly and since last year they even got the right to registrate, which is almost a kind of gay marriage, but they are just lazy demonstrators. Gay life in Zurich is easy because most of the people accept our lifestyle and even 58% voted for our registration law. Just when it comes to sex, the good will ends.

During the time of the voting campaign we always tried to present the gay community as most normal as possible, for the hetero people could accept us. In this time our colourful rainbow faded to grey and many of the gays started to behave as grey as the most boring heteros do. 5 years ago the gay parties were just small illegal underground events. But they were really f***ing great. For the campaign every club opened it's doors to the hetero public - and lost its identity. Nothing against heteros. But when they come to a gay club and complain about gay cocks until the police starts to regulate and supervise everything, its no fun at all.

I think you all heard about our new police director, Mrs. Esther Maurer who takes the responsibility for many police raids against gay clubs. But in the last months I think she realised that there are bigger problems for Zurichs safety than our gay clubs and we have a chance to come back to normality in club life and prepare for a great Europride event next year.

Well, gay life is not only about party. But if you look at the great gay parades, its always the party scene that makes the whole fun of it. Without the floats with dj's, music and dances it's just a boring march of expensively understated dressed people walking down a street. The whole gay community needs the party scene to be visible and to achieve their individual goals.

I think Europride is a big chance for Zurich's gays. It's the moment for all the grey guys to leave their hiding places and to become visible. The potential could be much bigger than 100'000 people if we all would look forward to this event and stand by our rainbow. It's time to end the discussion about who are the better gays and stand together again. All colours of the rainbow for a community of people who fight against discrimination and show how one can live in our full diversity.