I took my dad to pride today. After asking him and saying what itt might entail, I made him a free dad hugs sign:
While walking there, a lot of people pointed at him and said it was a cute idea. They were right.
My (and his) personal highlights were:
A guy hugging him and saying something in Ukrainian (bc of the flag, probably)
Someone asking him if they can call him "daddy" (I had to explain to him why I started laughing. He now knows.)
Someone giving him a rose
Someone kissing him on the cheeck
A lot of people seeing me standing around awkwardly while there was a line forming in front of him and hugging me too
A guy my dad's age hugging him with tears in his eyes
A kid my age shouting "I don't have a father!", Running towards and almost tackling him
A guy in a fetish-related dog mask hugging him and clinging to him like a lifeline
Two children between eight and ten initiating a group hug with him and giggling the entire time
Everyone thanking him afterwards and a lot of people saying he gives the best hugs in the world. One guy said he'd never been hugged like that before
This guy in a moving lorry shouting and making the lorry stop driving to get a hug from my dad:
My dad said that the majority of people hugging him were either older (25-60) queer men or younger (15-25) trans people. He really loved the experience and felt like a lot of the people, especially the older guys really needed it.
Anyway we're definitely doing this again next year
6/1/2023
