When he participated in New York’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride March alongside Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Senator Charles Schumer and City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, Governor David Paterson received thunderous applause and praise from the gay community for his vigorous efforts in advocating gay rights. Just a month prior, New York Governor Paterson issued a directive to state agencies to recognize and provide full marriage benefits to gay couples who were legally married elsewhere.

“When Governor Paterson says he's a friend to the LGBT community, he means it... What he did ... sends a message that leadership isn't about waiting. It's about finding the opportunity. It's about finding the way to move progress and civil rights forward,” said Quinn.

No governor has ever embraced the gay community as fully as Governor Paterson, who is believed to be the first serving governor to ever march in a gay pride parade. Even a thunderstorm halfway through didn’t dampen the mood of those that were marching down Fifth Avenue. The parade involved half a million participants and an estimated 1 million onlookers.     

However, not everyone is happy about Governor Paterson’s initiative on behalf of the gay community. Representing several state Republican officials, a conservative Christian policy group is suing the governor in State Supreme Court in the Bronx over the directive. Governor Paterson remains firm.

“It is the law and it is the right thing to do. I stand by it,” he said. “If someone would like to go to court and waste their money and prove me wrong, they can do that. And I welcome that.”

Democratic Assemblyman Daniel J. O’Donnell believes that Governor Paterson is emerging as an icon for the gay community. 

Gilbert Baker, the creator of the Rainbow Flag, and Candis Cayne, the transsexual actress who recently appeared on Dirty Sexy Money, were the grand marshals for the parade.