Mon 24 Feb 2014 In: New Zealand Daily News View at Wayback View at NDHA
Richard Taki (right) loved seeing all the work that went in A still-buzzing Auckland Pride Parade Director is paying tribute to all the community groups who worked so hard on their floats and the ‘rainbow stars’ who came out on Saturday night. “I am ecstatic. Very ecstatic, and proud and inspired by our rainbow community,” Richard Taki tells GayNZ.com Daily News, now he’s had time to reflect on Saturday’s event. The Kiwi, who returned from his new home in Melbourne to put the Parade together, says he enjoyed seeing so many kids involved with their families, and also loved the amount of effort that went into the floats. “Someone said to me in the lead up that they ‘hoped the community groups looked better this year’. They really didn’t understand that community groups have limited access to artists or professional assistance. It’s just them trying to put it together. So I found that a little bit offensive. OUTLine was one of the many community groups who participated “But when I looked at some of the floats and the hours they’d spent on them … hours of voluntary time was put into these community floats and they should be respected for that.” Taki was also inspired to see so many ‘rainbow stars’ come out for the night. “Just seeing them walking or looking gorgeous on a float, just participating … I saw lots of familiar faces that weren’t sitting on the fence and actually pulled finger out and got involved. That was great.” The crowd loved the Unitec rocket - the people onboard were loving it too! Official Parade crowd numbers are expected tomorrow, as are announcements on which floats judges and the public loved the most. The winner of the Best Float will win a trip for two to San Francisco. Feedback to GayNZ.com has been that Unitec’s rainbow rocket float was popular, as were Mika on the Taniwha of Love and the Pasifika LGBTQI youth. The Gay Wakeboarders Association and their water guns are said to have been one of the most fun, along with the Greens and ‘Queen Metiria’, while Rainbow Youth and Rainbow Families were heart-warmers. Overwatch had more marchers this year, and the crowd loved it The much larger contingent from the New Zealand Defence Force’s Overwatch group went down a treat once again. Readers are delighted police and ambulance representatives marched, but would love to see police in uniform next time around. On the delays and the gaps While the comments to GayNZ.com have been chiefly glowing, some people have expressed disappointment at lengthy gaps between the floats. Some participants also say they were rushed down the street, with a dancing group left unable to perform its planned routine. The ribbon was cut, then a medical emergency delayed things Richard Taki has explained that a combination of a medical emergency as the first float was about to leave, protesters entering the Parade path and participants stopping, all caused delays which meant time had to be made up. “Literally, the emergency happened just a few minutes before seven o’clock. And it was on Ponsonby Rd.” An ambulance which was at the top of the road on standby for the Parade was sent to help, and had to be replaced before the Parade could start. Protestors slowed things down too Protesters who got onto the Parade route and confronted the Israeli Embassy’s entry also had an impact. “We had to make sure everyone was safe. That did take quite a few minutes – and in a parade on a limited time frame, any loss of minutes means delays.” Taki says. However he makes it clear his main concern was everyone’s safety – the protesters, the audience and the parade participants. As for the gaps between the floats, he says every parade he’s ever been involved in, here and overseas, has had them. “Gaps are part and parcel of having a parade with walkers. A big surprise for me was that some of the Parade participants stopped. We say in all of our rules and guidelines and at the workshops ‘no stopping’. But I think there were certainly corners or areas in the Parade which had many, many, many people. The cheers, I feel, was overwhelming for some of the groups, so they automatically stopped. And stopped a lot. So that stopping caused quite a lot of delay. That’s why we go on about it in the workshops ‘just keep on moving, no stopping’. “But I think in reality it would have been the emergency at the beginning, and the protest, that certainly put us behind in crucial minutes. They were the main cause of the delay. We then really had to start pushing through, and I know some people felt rushed, but the Parade had to get done within a certain timeframe. So that’s just the way it rolled out on the day.” Cissy Rock rode with the Auckland Council team Overall, Taki is delighted. “There will be some learnings, I’m sure, that we’ll take on board,” he says. “But certainly for me it was an outstanding event which I’ve loved doing from the minute I was on board. The most special thing for me was that I got to work so closely with a lot of our community groups.” Home time for Taki Taki will meet with all his volunteers for the final time tomorrow in a thank you get together. He then has a bit of work ahead at this weekend’s Sydney Mardi Gras parade, before returning home to Melbourne, where he might finally get the chance to relax and enjoy a little married bliss. (He and his partner Shane Scally married in Auckland last month).
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Monday, 24th February 2014 - 3:54pm