Mexico: Tijuana gay pride 2009

Back in June 2005, I found myself crossing the border into Mexico from the United States for the first time in my life.

I was visiting my friend Rex Wockner in San Diego and we were on a mission to find out if Tijuana Pride was a go... or a bust.

Mostly, it was a bust, with a few late stragglers walking around, like us, trying to figure out the what and the who and not having much success. There were few signs of organization or leadership or anybody who could say for a fact that the parade had been canceled.

Jump ahead three years and here we have Tijuana Pride 2009, in a year that has seen the city's murder and crime rate go way up, in light of a recent increase in lawlessness.

Was it a go? Was it a bust? Amazingly, according to Rex, it was "bigger, better, longer, more colorful and more spirited than ever."

He was there to cover it as a journalist and noted that, unlike previous years, a lot of Southern Californians seemed to stay away in droves due to the fears of violence.

He has much more on the parade on his blog, including lots of photos. Just go to "Tijuana pride triples in size, despite crime wave" to read all about it (photo above copyright © 2009 Rex Wockner - All Rights Reserved).