The parade's roots stems from NYC's 1969 Stonewall Riots, when the police would routinely harass gays, but in this particular incident it was the transgenders/transsexuals who were tired of this and fought back.

There are lots of crowds along the parade route, and it may be difficult to get a clear view of the parade, traditionally led off by the Dykes on Bikes. Colorful costumes, colorful people, very crowded, people-watching.

Use public transportation if possible.

Phone: (415) 864-0831, Fax: (415) 864-5889
email info@sfpride.org

BART Civic Center for Saturday celebration; Embarcadero to Civic Center along Sunday parade route
Muni 14, 14L, 26, J, K, L, M, N, S.

The parade was on the Sunday, so we decided to go along, as we would probably never see the like again. True to British form, we got there a few hours before it was due to start to make sure we got a good spot--we did, since we were the only ones there! Apparently Americans do not queue and stand around for hours before an event like us Brits.

The first thing to happen when the parade started was that hundreds of women on motorbikes went noisily down the road. These were the Dykes on Bikes. Some were solo, others in pairs, and their clothing ranged from the sublime to the ridiculous. Many had leather on, but not the normal biker leather--more like thongs, straps, etc. There were also a lot of chains and quite a few didn’t have anything on at all.

Then followed the floats and walkers. Again, many of the people had very strange attire on. One chap ran down the road with nothing on but a restraining contraption on his privates (to put it politely). Many of the marchers were protesting for certain rights, such as for gays and lesbians to marry. Others were there simply as an excuse to dress up and have a good time. There were many transgender people who were proudly showing off their surgery, such as women who had had their breasts removed to become men. A woman standing next to us found this very distasteful and hurled abuse at them.

A lot of effort had gone into all the costumes and trucks; it was an extremely colourful event. I can honestly say, I have never seen so many strange sights, but it was great fun. After 3 hours of watching the parade, we decided to leave as it was getting extremely hot--we Brits don’t do hot too well. It is a day we will never forget, and we have loads of photos to bring back the memories--some of which you could not show your parents!

If you happen to be in San Francisco during Gay Pride, do go to the parade. Even if you are straight like us, you will thoroughly enjoy yourself and perhaps be made more aware of the bigotry and prejudice against such people.

We were able to get a perfect place to watch the parade. We were located near a great coffee shop that even had a bathroom we could use! That coupled with a front row spot for viewing made our efforts even more successful than planned.

The Pride Parade was, as always, started out with "Dykes on Bikes" which is followed by "Mikes on Bikes". "Mikes on Bikes" are all men named Mike riding bicycles. There were well over a hundred in each of the first two groups. The parade lasted for about 3 hours with one incredible float after another. There were groups of Gay/Lesbian Asian Pacific Islanders, Teen groups, PFLAG, Gay/Lesbian police officers, Gay/Lesbian clergy and just about every other group you can imagine and some you couldn’t. The Gay/Lesbian veteran groups included WWII veterans from all branches of the armed forces.

There were some incredible floats from businesses and the Gold’s Gym float caught the eye of my gay male friends. Lots of politicians were in the parade as well as political hopefuls. Some of the floats and marchers went for humor and some were representing more serious subjects such as HIV/AIDS service and education groups.

Many of the floats passed out rainbow colored beads and candy. It was a typical parade in many ways with a celebration of Gay Pride, Freedom and Equality. It was an awesome experience, which celebrated how far we have come and how far we have to go to be accepted as an important part of our communities.

There were thousands of people in the parade and even more watching. There seemed to be as many straight people there for the parade as there were Gays and Lesbians, which was wonderful to see.