Havana Holds Gay Rights Parade

A parade marking the International Day Against Homophobia that celebrates sexual diversity has been held in Havana, Cuba.

Associated Press reports that dozens of people marched through Havana Saturday while waving rainbow flags and banging drums. One participant held a portrait of former leader Fidel Castro. Castro's niece Mariela Castro is a proponent of gay rights and heads the government-backed National Sexual Education Center and says the march is meant to raise awareness about discrimination.

Today Cuba is more tolerant of homosexuality than in the early years after the 1959 revolution, when many gays lost jobs, were imprisoned or sent to work camps, or fled to exile. Recently the Cuban government has even began paying for Cubans to have gender reassignment surgery.