San Francisco Pride: Thousands to celebrate LGBTQ community

There was color everywhere — flags, capes, costumes. The street was flooded with spirited people and rainbow confetti. The smell of greasy hot dogs and buttery popcorn tempted the hungry people watching the parade in front of them. All of these hungry people were there to support the LBGTQ community through the San Francisco Pride parade.

SF Pride Parade 2017 — Paraders march with the LGBTQ flag as well as differently colored balloons to show their support for LGBTQ rights.

On Friday, June 26, 2015, the Supreme Court ruled by a five to four vote that the Constitution guarantees a right to same-sex marriage. That weekend, parades and festivals erupted across the country, celebrating the long-sought victory for the gay rights movement.

Two years later, on Sunday, June 25, a celebration took place on Market St. in San Francisco. Starting at 10:30 A.M., the marchers danced to the blaring music and ran down the street in costumes and colorful outfits, maintaining the joyous atmosphere throughout the day. Look below to see more from parade
attendees.

Corri Albertson (Left) And Peter Tzonev (Right)

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Why did you come here today?

Albertson: [I am] very very gay.

Tzonev: [I am] extremely, extremely homosexual.

Have you been here before?

Albertson: [It is our] first pride, but [we have been visiting] SF for a while.

What kinds of struggles exist in the LGBTQ community?

Albertson: A lot of people really really hate us for no reason and the misunderstanding that comes with that is hard, but you get used to it after a while.

Tzonev: My family is really not that great about it, but I’m pretty lucky because we live in a liberal area and I’m a tall person—I’m big, I’m scary, so people don’t really bother me as much as they might other people.

What do you hope will be accomplished through events like this?

Tzonev: Awareness and normalization of gay things.

Albertson: It’s seen as something as taboo and not really normal, and that should change.

Joseph and Matt Maffei met five years ago and have been married for three years. Matt has been coming to a variety of pride events for over 30 years, yet this parade is only Joseph’s second. Photo by Chetana Ramaiyer.

Joseph (Left) and Matt (Right) Maffei:

Why did you come here today?

Joseph: To celebrate. I mean it’s pride and we’re in San Francisco, so we have to enjoy and be proud.

What are you most excited for?

Matt: Seeing the costumes and hearing what people have to say about Trump… [I don’t have] very nice things to say about him.

How did you guys come up with your costumes?

Matt: He started with those boots.

Joseph: It’s the boots.

Matt: And then since he was Tonto, I had to be the Lone Ranger.

Any other thoughts? Joseph: This is for [us] to be proud. Enjoy life. No hate.

From left to right: Spencer Little, Michael McRay and Nick Mosher

prid2e — Spencer Little, Michael McRay and Nick Mosher drove down from Portland, Oregon on Thursday June 22 to celebrate pride in the parade. They come to San Francisco about three times a year for fun and decided (with the help of a couple friends) that for pride this year, they’d bring their dogs. Photo by Chetana Ramaiyer.

What are you most excited about today? Michael McRay: Just to be around such a positive, large amount of people. Everybody is just here to have fun.

What do you hope will be accomplished through events like this? Nick Mosher: Hopefulness, happiness and love.

How did you come up with the idea of dressing up your dog? Spencer Little: Two groomers and a really creative man.

Why did you come to the event today? Michael McRay: Being able to celebrate love and being together as family and friends.