The 2011 Gay Pride Parade NYC route begins at 36th Street and Fifth Avenue and moves south to Christopher and Greenwich Streets. The route is a straight line between 36th Street and 8th Street, where the route bends sharply to the left towards the West Village, crossing Christopher Street and ending on Greenwich Street, where stationary celebrations await.

The Gay Pride Parade in New York has particular significance this year, since just two days ago, the New York State Senate legalized marriage for same-sex couples.

2011 marks the 42nd anniversary of the Stonewall Riots in 1969, but the march this year is a much more festive, celebratory event.

Here are some photos of Gay Pride parades of years past, and one photo that promises to go down in history as one of the very first taken after same-sex marriage was legalized in New York.

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