John Beale, Post-Gazette Gov. Ed Rendell watches the Pittsburgh Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Pride March make its way through Downtown yesterday. Click photo for larger image.

Wearing "Just married in Canada" T-shirts and identical gold wedding rings, Maria and Beth Kramer, of Ross, were on a motorcycle at the start of the gay community's Pride March, which Gov. Ed Rendell kicked off Downtown yesterday with "Ladies, start your engines!"

A few minutes earlier, the governor had brought the couple, who married in Stratford, Ontario, in April, on stage.

"Some day I hope that shirt says 'Just married in Pennsylvania,' " he said, to a roar of approval from the crowd.

Earlier this month, the state House passed a bill that would change the constitution to outlaw same-sex marriages. Last week, the Senate Judiciary Committee approved the bill, but with a change that eliminated a ban on civil unions, or domestic partnerships.

Mr. Rendell counted the committee's move as a victory, and he said the original House proposal could have threatened domestic partnership benefits that many Pennsylvania employers already offer to employees.

He added, "This was not just a political ploy. This was an evil and pernicious attempt to strip away basic freedoms."

The state's Defense of Marriage Act of 1996 is already in place and unchallenged, so "this constitutional amendment is totally superfluous," Mr. Rendell said.

Civil unions aren't recognized in Pennsylvania, either.

He noted that if a 55-year-old woman is in the intensive care unit, her third cousin whom she hasn't seen in 20 years can visit, yet the woman with whom she's been in a committed relationship with for 30 years cannot.

It's the first time that any Pennsylvania governor has appeared at a Pittsburgh Pride parade and festival, said Jeff Freedman, planning committee chairman.

The Gay and Lesbian Community Center of Pittsburgh oversees the annual event, which includes members of the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender communities.

Mr. Freedman estimated that about 6,500 people attended this year, about a 60 percent increase from last year.

Minutes after noon, the marchers stretched along Fifth Avenue from Ross Street to Liberty Avenue and beyond.

Eventually they crossed the Roberto Clemente Bridge, went around PNC Park and then gathered at Riverfront Park on the North Shore for an afternoon festival, where state Rep. Dan Frankel, D-Squirrel Hill, and City Council members made appearances.

One woman, a 58-year-old from an eastern suburb who did not want to be identified, was amazed by the turnout.

"I can tolerate just about anything," she said. "I'm not going to say this is wrong. It's the way they get their point across."

"Any time there's any sort of debate going on, it's going to draw attention," Mr. Freedman said. "Our biggest increase in participation has been from the straight community."

The PrideFest theme is "Pride Not Prejudice," and "it couldn't be any more apropos because we're being attacked," he said.

Marcher David Schelbe, co-president of the Pittsburgh chapter of Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, and his wife have been married for 35 years. One of their three daughters, as he put it, "happens to be a lesbian."

"I don't need an amendment to protect my marriage," he said. "Who is it going to protect me from? I view this as blatant discrimination."

His daughter and her partner had a ceremony in North Carolina to express their commitment to each other.

"Of course, it's not recognized by the church or the laws of our land," Mr. Schelbe said.

Wedding planning for the Kramers, who had been together for six months before Beth proposed to Maria, included consultations with lawyers to manage name changes and cross-border issues.

After their ceremony in Canada, they honeymooned in Niagara Falls.

"We didn't get married for Gov. Rendell or the state," Maria Kramer said. "We got married because we love each other, the same reason everybody else gets married."