San Francisco Pride 2009 promo.
What is a gay celebration without some good old electro pop and dance music? It's unacceptable. Therefore, there have been, are, and will be many electronic music events for all who are willing to participate and support the cause of spreading awareness of the LGBT community. This has been a tumultuous year for Americans, Californians, the gay community, and the gay community supporters. With much debate, uproar, and shock over the outcome of prop 8 in California, this year's pride in SF will undoubtedly exude that much more... pride. There will be over 200 parade contingents, 300 exhibitors, and 19 stages and venues. The SF LGBT Pride Celebration and Parade is the largest LGBT gathering in the nation. Come show love and support to not only the LGBT community but also to the SF community by joining in on this year's pride theme, "In Order to Form a More Perfect Union."
The 39th annual SF Pride Parade is coming up this month on Sunday, June 28th, but the festivities for gay pride in SF have already begun. The first day of SF Pride started May 30th with the Kick off celebration at the LGBT community center and will continue until the four day Homo A Go Go event on August 13th to the 16th. The first week of June were events thrown by different dance clubs and classes, including salsa and swing, and various performances and expos. Starting June 7th, filmmakers, artists, and writers show what they've got throughout the city for a plethora of different events up until and through the Pride Parade on the 28th.
This year's parade will start at 10:30AM on Market St. at Beale St. and end at Market St. and 8th St. For those unable to attend the parade but would like to connect, you can touch base with the parade on Comcast Digital Channel 99 at 10AM for California Comcast subscribers, Clear Channel Radio on SFPrideLive.com at 10AM, KOFY TV 20/Cable 13 at 8PM, and Comcast Channel On Demand/Local Events starting June 29th at 7PM until July 31st.
The main stage will be located in Civic Center next to City Hall, and this year's headlining performers for Sunday will include BoA, Solange Knowles, and the Cliks. Speakers will include Lt. Dan Choi. On Saturday, June 27th, there will be the Battle of the Bands with the Bob Hill Band, Dragon Daughter, Matai, and more. The celebrity guests this year will be actress, musician, and author, Calpernia Addams and actor Darryl Stephens.
The celebrities and big name performers will help the pride with hype and media attention, but pride is not only to help awareness but it is also a time for those who are aware to celebrate and rejoice in all that the community has accomplished. Different communities from all over SF will join together amongst the 20 stages and venues, including Soul of Pride lineup with Fiona Simone, Mack Mistress, TeriCaiten, and more; Tantra Underground Dance stage, which will house SF's underground electronic dance music by the people who brought you Pink Saturday, Castro Halloween, and LoveFest SF; Club Papi Latin stage will have Fey and Laura Leon; and Community Dance Arena on Grove St. beside City Hill will bring hip-hop and house DJ's to the celebration.
The previously mentioned events and artists that are contributing in this year's pride does not even leave a dent in the entire scheme of what is happening this month. Admittance to events at City Hall are donation based, and since 1997 these events have given more than $1.4 million in grands back to the SF community. Another large contributing event for pride is SF based radio channel Energy 92.7's "Launch the Party" with Kaskade, Chris Lake, Chris Willis, Jess, and more at the Regency Center on Saturday, June 20th. A dollar from each ticket sold will be donated to the San Francisco AIDS Foundation.
We all have our differences in lifestyle, ideology, and beliefs; but the one thing we all share that even science cannot disprove is our humanity. Pride is meant to be fun and a time of celebration, but let us not forget what it is we are celebrating and what it is we are fighting against. Let us leave off with an infamous poem about inactivity. "When the Nazis came for the communists, I remained silent; I was not a communist. Then they locked up the social democrats, I remained silent; I was not a social democrat. Then they came for the trade unionists, I did not protest; I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, I did not speak out; I was not a Jew. When they came for me, there was no one left to speak out for me."
However, since this is an occasion of celebration, let us rather leave off with lyrics from Paul Van Dyk's "Time of Our Lives." "There's a time for us to let go; There's a time for holding on; A time to speak, a time to listen; There's a time for us to go; There's a time for lying low down; There's a time for getting high; A time for peace, a time for fighting; A time to live, a time to die..."
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