Dutch soldiers are once again allowed to wear their military uniforms while participating in Amsterdam’s Gay Pride canal parade, Deputy Defense Minister Jack de Vries has announced.

The deparment emphasizes that it will not officially take part in the parade by sponsoring a boat, as it does not believe the parade contributes to a more positive image of homosexuals. »

The University of Amsterdam (UvA) will not sponsor a boat during Amsterdam’s Gay Pride canal parade.

Last January Laurens Buijs, a researcher and teacher at the university’s College and Graduate School for Social Sciences, started a campaign encouraging the UvA to participate in the parade by sponsoring its own boat. Doing so is necessary, Buijs says, because according to him “homosexuality is still taboo among students.” »

In Amsterdam, 500,000 people turned out for the city’s 13th annual Gay Pride canal parade.

A record eighty boats carried thousands of gays and lesbians clad in scanty or extravagant clothing through the city’s historic centre. »

Nowadays many cities throughout the world have a gay pride parade, but keen observers agree: there’s nothing quite like Amsterdam’s Gay Pride Canal Parade.

Last year half a million people lined the canals and bridges to view the lengthy parade of, er, gayly decorated party boats. »

Amsterdam Gay Pride 2008 will take place from 31 July to 3 August 2008 under the slogan, ‘We are Amsterdam Pride’. The highlight of Amsterdam Pride will continue to be the illustrious Canal Parade. »