From August 3 to 5, many events will be held for homosexuals, bisexuals and transsexuals in Hanoi.

A press conference on Viet Pride program.

This is the first large-scaled festival for homosexuals, bisexuals and transsexuals in Vietnam. The festival is among activities of the Viet Pride program, a small version of the Pride Festival.

Pride festival is events celebrating lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) culture. The events also at times serve as demonstrations for legal rights such as same-sex marriage. Most pride events occur annually and many take place around June to commemorate the Stonewall riots, a pivotal moment in the modern LGBT rights movement.

The first three-day Pride festival in Vietnam will have the participation of the community of LGBT from the three organizations of YMG, ICS and Viet Smile. 

Activities kick-off on Friday 3 August, with a musical performance and opening speech at the Goethe Institute. The evening continues with the showing of a documentary, entitled "The Case of LGBT funding in Vietnam: Transforming Lives, Enforcing Rights" and a film screening of "Kyss Mig" by Lebox Produktion (Sweden).

Saturday morning starts at the Canadian Embassy, with various speeches and film showings, and the film screenings continue in the evening with "Kommt Mausi Raus? (Is Mausi Coming Out?)", by Alexander Scherer and Angelina Maccarone, and "The Truth About Jane", by Hearst Entertainment.

On Sunday a bicycle parade -- Cycle with Pride -- will start at My Dinh Stadium, at 8:30 and will end at Ly Tu Trong Park, at 11:30. 

Viet Pride 2012 aims to encourage people to come forward, to come out and to live openly with pride; to strengthen the sense of community that transcend group boundaries and differences; and to create an official and interactive forum where pro-gay organisations and beneficiary community come together, interact, and foster trust and collaborations.

The event is held by the Centre for Studies and Applied Sciences in Gender, Family, Women and Adolescents and UN Women and supported by the Swedish Embassy Hanoi, the Goethe Institute, the Canadian Embassy and other sponsors.

Source: VNN