They celebrated Pride in Toronto yesterday with one of the largest parades in North America.

Tens of thousands of people attended, much to the delight of Pride executive director Sherwin Modeste who said this year’s event will go down as one of the largest in Toronto’s history.

However, overshadowing the festivities was the need to spend twice as much on security this year than last.

Some attendees said the environment that makes extra security necessary also makes it all the more important to celebrate Pride and show solidarity with the L-G-B-T-Q-Plus community.