A little bit of rain early Sunday morning did not keep the 2014 Atlanta Pride parade from starting right on time at 1 p.m. as the skies cleared and sunny blue skies shone overhead for the some 200 entries and 5,000 participants. Thousands more lined Peachtree Street and 10th Street to Piedmont Park as LGBT people and supporters took over Midtown. The parade finished in record time, at 3:15 p.m., said Atlanta Pride Executive Director Buck Cooke.
“We are a rain-or-shine event, so while we were wet on Sunday morning setting up for the parade and getting the festival up and running, everything went as scheduled,” Cooke said.
“Our parade co-chair arrived at the Charles Allen Gate at the conclusion of the parade around 3:15 p.m., making this one of the fastest parades we have had in years,” he added. “We worked very hard to keep all of the parade entries on pace to cut down on gaps in the parade and, as we explained to the community when the applications opened in February, we reduced the number of entries in the parade and closed early in order for the parade not to run too long.”
Winners of the parade:
NONPROFIT DIVISION
Honorable mention – Gay Straight Alliances of Atlanta
Third place – Lifeline Animal Project
Second place – The Armorettes
1st place – Latin Gay Community
COMMERCIAL DIVISION
Third place – Swinging Richards
2nd place – Power 96.1
1st place – Cox Enterprises
(Photos by Dan Lax)