History
The first event resembling the modern San Francisco Pride celebration was held in 1970—a small "gay-in" in Golden Gate Park. Since 1972, the event has been held each year. The name of the festival has changed over the years. The event organizers each year select a theme for the event, which is reflected in the logo and the event’s publicity.
The Rainbow Flag identified with the LGBT community was originally created by Gilbert Baker for the 1978 San Francisco Pride Parade. It originally had eight stripes, but was later simplified to the current six stripes. A six-stripe Rainbow Flag flies over Harvey Milk Plaza in the Castro, arguably the best known gay village in the world.
| Year | Dates | Festival name | Theme | Estimated attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | June 28 | Christopher Street Liberation Day Gay-in at Speedway Meadows Golden Gate Park | Freedom Day Revolution | 30 hair fairies (what transsexuals were then called) marched down Polk Street, then San Francisco's primary gay neighborhood, in the morning; afterward, several hundred people attended the "Gay-in", which began at 1PM. |
| 1971 | No Pride festival | |||
| 1972 | June 25 | Christopher Street West | 54,000 | |
| 1973 | June 24 | Gay Freedom Day | A Celebration of the Gay Experience | 42,000 |
| 1974 | June 30 | Gay Freedom Day | Gay Freedom by ’76 | 60,000 |
| 1975 | June 29 | Gay Freedom Day | Join Us, The More Visible We Are, The Stronger We Become | 82,000 |
| 1976 | June 27 | Gay Freedom Day | United for Freedom, Diversity is our Strength | 120,000 |
| 1977 | June 26 | Gay Freedom Day | Gay Frontiers: Past Present, Future | 250,000 |
| 1978 | June 25 | Gay Freedom Day | Come Out with Joy, Speak out for Justice | 240,000 |
| 1979 | June 24 | Gay Freedom Day | Our Time has Come | 200,000 |
| 1980 | June 29 | Gay Freedom Day | Liberty and Justice for All | 250,000 |
| 1981 | June 28 | International Lesbian & Gay Freedom Day Parade | Front Line of Freedom | 250,000 |
| 1982 | June 27 | International Lesbian & Gay Freedom Day Parade | Out of Many...One | 200,000 |
| 1983 | June 26 | International Lesbian & Gay Freedom Day Parade | Strengthen the Ties, Break the Chains | 200,000 |
| 1984 | June 24 | International Lesbian & Gay Freedom Day Parade | Unity & More in ’84 | 300,000 |
| 1985 | June 15 | International Lesbian & Gay Freedom Day Parade | Honor our Past, Secure our Future | 350,000 |
| 1986 | June 29 | International Lesbian & Gay Freedom Day Parade | Forward Together, No Turning Back | 100,000 |
| 1987 | June 28 | International Lesbian & Gay Freedom Day Parade | Proud, Strong, United | 275,000 |
| 1988 | June 26 | International Lesbian & Gay Freedom Day Parade | Rightfully Proud | |
| 1989 | June 25 | International Lesbian & Gay Freedom Day Parade | Stonewall 20: A Generation of Pride | |
| 1990 | June 24 | International Lesbian & Gay Freedom Day Parade | The Future Is Ours | |
| 1991 | June 30 | International Lesbian & Gay Freedom Day Parade | Hand In Hand Together | |
| 1992 | June 28 | International Lesbian & Gay Freedom Day Parade | A Simple Matter of Justice | |
| 1993 | June 27 | International Lesbian & Gay Freedom Day Parade | Year of the Queer | 400,000 - 500,000 |
| 1994 | June 19 | International Lesbian & Gay Freedom Day Parade | San Francisco to Stonewall: Pride & Protest | |
| 1995 | June 18 | San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration | A World Without Borders | |
| 1996 | June 29–30 | San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration | Equality & Justice For All | |
| 1997 | June 28–29 | San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration | One Community Many Faces | |
| 1998 | June 27–28 | San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration | Shakin’ It Up | |
| 1999 | June 26–27 | San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration | Proud Heritage, Powerful Future | 700,000 |
| 2000 | June 24–25 | San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration | It’s About Freedom | 750,000 |
| 2001 | June 23–24 | San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration | Queerific | 1,000,000 |
| 2002 | June 29–30 | San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration | Be Yourself, Change the World | |
| 2003 | June 28–29 | San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration | You’ve Gotta Give Them Hope | |
| 2004 | June 26–27 | San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration | Out 4 Justice | |
| 2005 | June 25–26 | San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration | Stand Up, Stand Out, Stand Proud | |
| 2006 | June 24–25 | San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration | Commemorate, Educate, Liberate — Celebrate! | "hundreds of thousands" |
| 2007 | June 23–24 | San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration | Pride Not Prejudice | |
| 2008 | June 28–29 | San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration | United by Pride, Bound for Equality | 1.2 million |
| 2009 | June 27–28 | San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration | In Order to Form a More Perfect Union... | 1.2 million |
| 2010 | June 26–27 | San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration | Forty and Fabulous | 1.2 million |
| 2011 | June 25–26 | San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration | In Pride We Trust | |
| 2012 | June 23–24 | San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Celebration | Global Equality |
Note: Several facts in this section are taken from KQED’s LGBT timeline. Logos of the various festivals may be seen at SF Pride’s website.
Read more about this topic: San Francisco Pride
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