WARSAW, June 8 (Xinhua) -- Tens of thousands of people attended an equality parade in central Warsaw on Saturday afternoon, which for the first time took place under the patronage of the Polish capital's mayor Rafal Trzaskowski.
According to municipality estimates, about 47,000 people attended this year's parade, which is the largest in Poland and dates back to 2001.
"The equality parade is teaching the basics of openness and tolerance. Let's be together here, smile to each other and have fun," Trzaskowski said, opening the march from a parade bus parked in front of the Palace of Culture and Science, Warsaw's landmark building.
"Not everyone must attend the equality parade, but everyone must respect the rights of minorities," Trzaskowski added, before thanking foreign ambassadors of Britain, Canada and Belgium among other countries for taking part in the parade.
"LGBT people have always existed and will always exist and they will defend -- until the end of the world, if needed -- their equal right to love, life, and safety," said Julia Maciocha, one of the organizers of the march.
While the equality parade is primarily an event organized by and for the LGBTQ community, the Warsaw event has always been more broadly defined, focusing on defending the rights of all minorities.
This year, participants in the equality parade marched under a set of principles which included calls for rights of people with disabilities to be respected, Poland to be open to refugees, migrants, nature and animals to be defended.
Similar parades are happening this month across Poland, though in some towns mayors have banned them, citing security concerns.
