Elsa Romero, one of the organizers and performers of the event said it is “the first and only celebration of the gay and lesbian community that will celebrate same-sex marriage in front of the biggest religious organization in Brazil”.
“We want it to be a celebration for the LGBT community, the Brazilian community and everyone in Brazil,” Romero said.
Her son also spoke about the decision.
“I have never felt happy for being gay,” said Gervinho, who just turned 14 and is studying civil engineering at Brasilia State University. “When I think about it now, all of that stuff seems like a bad dream.”
It’s the first time LGBT people have held a public wedding in South America.
The rainbow flag will be flown outside the venue as a symbolic way to symbolizes it was a “wedding”, while the Brazilian flag will be at half-mast, “because no one should suffer the humiliation of being gay. It is a symbol of persecution,” Romero said.
However, many Brazilians have taken to social media to voice their displeasure with the decision.
The decision to ban a pride and gay-pride in the home of the nation’s biggest Orthodox Church is extremely wrong. pic.twitter.com/m5R2Z0M6Kl — Carlos Carvalho (@carlos_carvalho) June 23, 2015
This news puts a lot of shame in the hearts of LGBT people in Brazil. This move is also a denial of the Brazilian people. https://t.co/4H2NpMjf1J — Dr. A.M.R. (@marca_morrison) June 23, 2015
Many Brazilians have taken to Twitter to express their disappointment in the decision.
Caught in the crossfire of homophobia and racism within Brazil’s media and society, homophobia has not been seen since at least the 1960s – but it never really went away.
This year’s LGBT celebrations would hardly have come to be without the controversial events surrounding the ‘March Against Homophobia’ last month that resulted in the death of a gay man from complications following a traffic accident.
It is also worth noting that while the LGBT community had to endure the ‘March Against Homophobia’ protests, the Church has been more active in its campaign of banning their celebrations in several of South America’s states.
For years