Inflatable marker above the crowd on the quay, 2005

AUG 13 2005

A tall red inflatable column rises over the packed lakeside route, used to mark a truck or stand in the crush. The parade is legally still a demonstration, a status dating from its 1992 permit, which is why the city carries much of the security cost. Costume and improvised signage have always done the work that stewards' barriers do at ticketed festivals.