San francisco: Around 200 people with a Taiwanese background took part with Team Taiwan in San Francisco Pride Sunday, showcasing LGBTQ+ imagery in ways that contained elements unique to the island nation. In addition to traditional LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer or questioning) elements, those representing Taiwan also presented the country’s own twist as the first nation in Asia to legalize same-sex marriage.

According to Focus Taiwan, Team Taiwan was made up of expats and members of Taiwanese American organizations such as Taiwanese Americans for Equality. The participants also designed signs that highlighted diversity and tolerance in Taiwan. Other than using a pickup truck in the Taiwan section of the march, participants also dressed their pets up and walked from Market Street at the Bay Area’s Embarcadero Plaza at 10:30 a.m. accompanied by the playful Taiwanese ballad “Love Cha-Cha”.

Team Taiwan convener Alice Lu said one of the design motifs for those representing Taiwan included pebbles from the island, which conveyed the inclusiveness of the country and its ongoing work to build a tolerant nation one stone at a time. Lee Kun-jer, an attendant from Team Taiwan, said he looks forward to sharing the pride of Taiwan’s equality with the United States. As one of the world’s first locations to celebrate LGBTQ+ equality, the theme of this year’s San Francisco parade was “Queer Joy is Resistance.”