This year’s online-only Taiwan LGBT Pride parade on Saturday next week is to feature interactive “stages” with celebrity performances and drag queen shows, organizer Taiwan Rainbow Civil Action Association said.
In place of the event’s normal parade through downtown Taipei, the 19th edition of the event would include five interactive stages — Main Stage, Party Float, International Pride Issues, Parade Issues and Chat Box — accessible through the event’s Web site, event.taiwanpride.lgbt, the association said.
The lineup for this year’s event includes celebrity performances, drag queen shows, chat rooms and online shopping from 2pm to 5:30pm, it said.
Photo: Ann Wang, Reuters
The organizers last month announced that the parade would be held virtually this year due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Association spokesperson Tai Yu-hsun (戴佑勳) on Tuesday said that even though the nation’s COVID-19 situation has been improving, it was too late to reverse preparations for an online event, which started when domestic cases were still climbing.
“When we were planning for the parade earlier in the year, we were just about to enter a level 3 COVID-19 alert. So, if we made any changes now, it would affect the agreements we have with our collaborators,” Tai said.
Restrictions on public gatherings were introduced after a nationwide level 3 alert was announced on May 19 following a surge in domestic cases. With daily local case numbers regularly in the single digits, the Central Epidemic Command Center on July 27 announced a return to a level 2 alert.
About 130,000 people attended last year’s parade, which followed a record-breaking turnout of 200,000 in 2019 — the same year Taiwan became the first nation in Asia to legalize same-sex marriage.
Association chairman Fletcher Hong (小鯨) said that despite recent progress, society has not yet reached true equality for people in the LGBT community.
“We often see areas, such as in shops or restrooms, labeled as ‘gender friendly’ spaces, but the purpose of that is so people can be themselves instead of having it as a place of refuge... We need to make being ‘friendly’ a part of our daily normal life,” Hong said.
Another focus of the event is HIV/AIDS education.
Chiu Yi-chi (邱奕頎), a director at the Persons with HIV/AIDS Rights Advocacy Association of Taiwan, said there was still a stigma attached to those infected with HIV — despite growing evidence that those with undetectable levels of the virus can no longer transmit it to sexual partners.
“Sometimes HIV positive people are turned away by dentists because they fear that they might not be able to fully disinfect their equipment,” Chiu said, adding that long-term nursing facilities sometimes refuse to let those with HIV share rooms with other patients.
Chiu said he hoped the work by his organization would help people in Taiwan learn more about medical advancements related to HIV and AIDS, and reduce stigmatization by introducing people to the friends and families of those with the disease.
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
A former officer in China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who witnessed the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre has warned that Taiwan could face a similar fate if China attempts to unify the country by force. Li Xiaoming (李曉明), who was deployed to Beijing as a junior officer during the crackdown, said Taiwanese people should study the massacre carefully, because it offers a glimpse of what Beijing is willing to do to suppress dissent. “What happened in Tiananmen Square could happen in Taiwan too,” Li told CNA in a May 22 interview, ahead of the massacre’s 36th anniversary. “If Taiwanese students or