My New York: Gotham City stands up for same-sex marriage tonight

Update: Towleroad, as always, has the most comprehensive rundown.

Oh what a beautiful sight! Thousands of people in a semi-impromptu demonstration the likes I haven't seen since that huge rally in Manhattan after the death of Matthew Shepard. All demanding equal rights for same-sex couples following the passage of California's Proposition 8 and chastising the Mormon church for pouring so much money into the effort to deny same-sex couples the right to marry.

Back then, after the Matthew Shepard rally, I was quoted in the Village Voice marveling at how e-mail networking had made the humongous vigil a reality. Appropriate, then, that tonight's vigil was brought to you pretty much courtesy of Facebook. To be sincere, I expected perhaps 1,000 people or less. As if! One estimate I heard tonight placed the crowd at 16,000 (smaller than the Matthew Sheppard vigil but just an amazing number for something that was almost ethereal in execution. Rex Wockner has a post on what might be called Activism 4.0 (personally - despite the turn out - I am uncertain how the energy can be truly channeled effectively in the future). Kudos to organizer Corey Johnson.

BTW - If you missed tonight there is another protest Saturday (more details here)

Snapshots from tonight:

Winner! Best sign of the night!

Runner up!

Le Joe Jervis est hoaging le camera (jeez! is Joe.My.God everywhere?)

The closing shot: The end of the night rally at Columbus Circle just outside Central Park.

'cept c'est le moi! c/o le Ozed guy! Thanks John!


More pictures here

A short vid below:


Related:

• Prop 8 backlash hits NYC Mormon Temple (Andy Humm / Gay City News)
  
• 15,000 march against Prop 8 in NYC (Wockner)
• NYC: Thousands rally for equality (Joe.My.God)
• Of the instant (John Ozed)
  
• Lavi Soloway's photos here
• NYC against Proposition 8 - aka Prop Hate (Pop Bytes)
  
• Thousands protest Prop 8 in Manhattan (Boy in Bushwick)
• Prop H: Child brides, YES! Gay marriage, NO! (Bitten by a Zebra)
  
• An amazing protest at the Mormon Temple in Manhattan (Father Tony / Bilerico)
• NY turns out for anti-Prop 8 march (Pam Spaulding)
• 10,000 New Yorkers turn out to protest Prop. 8 (Queerty)
• Thousands gather in NYC to peacefully protest proposition 8 (Brian Juergens / After Elton)