Story: San Francisco Pride Parade: A rookie’s experience

I expected a colorful and scandalous affair, a spectacle, really… but I hadn’t prepared myself for the enormous public support that the annual San Francisco Pride Celebration draws. Squeezing onto the Civic Center-bound BART train was a challenge in itself. I had not staked out my spot on the parade route since 6:00 AM, there were no vacant mailboxes or bus stop covers to stand on, and the line to get into the Leather Tent would to take the rest of my day. This was little deterrent, however: with so many participants, I knew this event must be worth seeing!

I soon located the end of the parade route – the sweet spot where the crowd barriers end and the safety monitors relax – and was able to see the parade without an 8-foot ladder. As they do every year, Dykes on Bikes led the way. But this year, in honor of the two-week-old court decision to legalize gay marriage, many of the women produced a softer side, trading their typical leather for white flowing wedding dresses. The parade lasted for hours – through multiple Rocky Horror floats, well-oiled and leather-clad men, boys dressed as girls, or not really dressed at all.

The San Francisco pride celebration began in 1970 as a modest one-year commemoration of the New York City Stonewall Rebellion. Almost forty years later, San Francisco pride has inspired thousands of similar events through out the world and this year, over one million people were in attendance.

What struck me about the event is the inclusiveness of the word “Pride.” The San Francisco Pride event started as “Gay Freedom Day” and eventually that title morphed to include “lesbian and bisexual transgender.” However, the event is not in any way exclusive to homosexuality. It’s really a celebration of acceptance and sexuality in general…whether you’re into men or women, cross-dressing or dominatrix, or are just a “fag hag” or “fruit fly,” it doesn’t matter here. San Francisco can handle it.