COUNTYWIDE : Thousands at Gay Pride Celebration

Thousands of people attended the fourth annual Orange County Lesbian and Gay Pride Celebration at UC Irvine on Sunday to support the sexual orientation of friends and loved ones and call for equal rights for gays.

“This is a wonderful explosion of love,” said actor Dick Sargent, grand marshal of this year’s parade and festival.

Sargent, best known for his role as Darrin in the television series “Bewitched,” looked at the passing floats and echoed a common sentiment at the event which had the theme “Pride=Power.”

“We won’t be ignored,” Sargent said. “We deserve to be heard. People don’t understand that we’re everywhere.”

An estimated 7,300 people attended the two-day event without incident, organizers said.

Parade sponsors said, however, that they were upset with representatives of the Marines Corps Air Station in El Toro who declined an invitation to provide a military honor guard at the parade.

Marine officials declined the request in a letter to the parade organizers, citing military regulations that prohibit participation in any event that appears “to endorse, favor or selectively benefit any particular group or organization.”

Local law enforcement officials, however, had no such problems. Representatives of several police agencies, including Anaheim, Garden Grove, Laguna Beach and Placentia, set up information and recruiting booths at the festival.

A carnival atmosphere prevailed throughout the festival grounds with music, dancing, and arts and crafts booths. A fortuneteller named Madame Ghandi set up shop to read the palms of festival-goers.

Some of the 101 booths dealt with more serious issues, such as safe-sex education and AIDS awareness.

As in previous gay pride celebrations, there were vocal demands for gay rights legislation. But this year, the call for equal treatment under the law seemed especially urgent to many at the parade and festival because of the coming presidential elections.

Although organizers declined to officially back a presidential candidate, Scott Liles, a spokesman for Orange County Cultural Pride, said the choice for many gays was pretty clear.

“Gov. (Bill) Clinton and Sen. (Al) Gore have gone on record supporting gay rights,” Liles said. “The Republican Party refuses to address those issues.”

There were other signs of Democratic appeal Sunday. Throughout the parade lines and inside the festival grounds, workers canvassed the area to register voters.

“We’re seeing more donkeys than elephants today,” said one voter registration signature gatherer, who declined to give his name.

To many gays and gay supporters, however, the event transcended any political cause.

“This is important for our pride. It gives us a sense of belonging,” said Marty Norman, 33, of Costa Mesa, who stood on Pereira Drive as the more than 50 floats passed by. “There’s a real feeling of unity here.”