Lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders have staged a big parade in Stockholm to show their choices to the public.

They're also pressing for gay rights recognition.

As an part of Stockholm Pride 2011, the parade began at around 1 p.m Saturday in the southern part of Stockholm. More than 50 thousands people took part.

Stockholm Pride is an annual gay pride festival held in the Swedish capital.

The destination of the parade is Sergels Square, the center of the city.

With full-mouthed music, rainbow flags-- the symbol of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people-- could be seen everywhere.

Participants also demanded equality and non-discrimination for gay people.

Since the start in 1998, Stockholm Pride has grown to be one of Stockholm's largest and most appreciated festivals.

The theme of this year is "Openness".

Every year, the festival attracts many people from all over Sweden and other countries.

This year, the event has drawn an estimated 500,000 spectators.

WHERE IS GAY CAPITAL

Along with the Stockholm Pride 2011, another gay parade has been held in the Dutch capital Amsterdam.

Holland is the first country to regularize homosexual marriage, and Amsterdam is called the Gay Capital of the world.

But, the city has reported a number cases of violence against homosexuals.

The Gay Pride, organized every first weekend of August, is an annual gay festival in Amsterdam.

Since 1996, the event has been one of the largest public events in Holland.

STANDUP (ENGLISH) CHRISTIEN VAN DEN BRINK, CNC CORRESPONDENT:
"Harry Mulisch, the famous Dutch writer once said in an interview that Amsterdam is the city of tolerance and happiness. But lately a few cases of violence against homosexuals have been reported. Some claim that Amsterdam is the Gay capital of the world. But we could ask ourselves the question: Is that really the case, still?"

The Gay Pride, however, seems to show that Amsterdam retains the title of the Gay Capital of the world.

The parade is one of the largest event in Holland with several hundreds of thousands people joining it.

The highlight of the event is the spectacular canal parade. Up to 80 boats carrying costumed people pass down the city's main canals throughout the whole city.

Dutch gays have it all. The same sex marriage, the right to adopt children and a government that stimulates tolerance at schools by handing out information brochures, etc.

But, recently, a few cases of violence against homosexuals have been reported in Amsterdam.

SOUNDBITE (DUTCH) VERA BERGKAMP, GAY RIGHTS GROUP:
"Amsterdam is still a very important place for homosexuals and the Gay Pride parade always attracts a lot of foreigners. However, research has shown that there is a decrease in tolerance when it comes to homosexuals here in this country. There have been a lot of incidents; people are being yelled at in the streets, or worse. Also, gay people feel less safe to walk hand in hand in the streets."

Gay rights groups are demanding more government efforts in removing discrimination via education.

SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) BORIS DITTRICH, GAY RIGHTS GROUP:
"We believe that it is very important that young children are taught at school what it is to be homosexual. Because at the moment there are many schools that do not want to talk about sexuality, let alone homo sexuality and we see that many lesbian girls and homosexual boys feel isolated, so it would be a good idea that they would know that sexuality is part of human nature and it is there to stay."

Rights activists are also urging governments across the globe to adapt their policies to become gay-friendly.