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April '98:
Lesbians
in Thailand
Speak Out
In Search of
Sulayman X
Mardi Party
Editorial
Lesbofile
Whirlybird
Queer Quotes
Queer of the
Month
Letters
Vol 1. No 7. April, 1998
Mardi Party!
Sydney's Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras threw one hell of a party on Feb 28 to celebrate its 20th anniversary. This year's parade through the city centre attracted a record crowd of 700,000 people, making it one of the biggest events in Australia. From its humble beginnings in 1978, when a motley crew of demonstrators demanded rights for gays and lesbians, and police responded with violence and arrests, the Mardi Gras has grown into an unstoppable annual expression of pride and glamour that draws visitors from around the world.
Among the 350 or so parade floats were 122 Xena Warrior Princesses, 70 marching drag queens, hundreds of bikiki-clad marching boys and a large contingent of luscious katoeys from Thailand, Malaysia and the Philippines. The parade was broadcast live on the Internet for the first time and recorded more than 20,000 hits.
It was a night to savour. In the words of Sydney Star Observer's Greg Logan: "Any party that has a DJ playing in the men's toilets, where dykes piss on each other in public is a good party."
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