San Francisco Pride is upon us, and while there are a gaggle of events happening to commemorate 48 years of queer activism in the city and beyond (and plenty of historic sites to visit if you’re in town for Pride), the full monty is the Pride March, happening on Sunday, June 24. This year’s Sunday parade route will be similar to last year’s, beginning at Market and Beale and ending at Market and Eighth Street. The theme of this year’s merriment is “Generations of Strength.” The Grand Marshals are Pose writer and producer Our Lady J; Jose Xtravaganza, member of the legendary House of Xtravaganza and dancer on Madonna’s Blonde Ambition tour; Kin Folkz, award-winning educator, human rights activist, and founder of Oakland Pride; and Soni Wolf, founder of Dykes on Bikes—just to name a few. However, Sunday’s parade isn’t the only march happening this Pride season. Au contraire. The Dyke March, happening on Saturday in the Mission, has only grown in numbers each year. And the Trans March, arguably the most important and unadulterated Pride event, kicks off on Friday. (Sunday’s Pride parade now has more to do with amplifying mega-corporations and less about the voices and history of the LGBTQ community, hence the need for smaller, local-focused marches.) What do you need to know if you want to attend? Here’s a handy breakdown of everything you need to know about San Francisco Pride, including street closures, public transit reroutes, parking, and more. San Francisco Pride Parade, Sunday, June 24 What time does the Pride parade start? Beginning at 10:30 a..m. on Sunday. What route will the parade follow? The parade runs along Market Street from Beale to Eighth Street. The march will proceed west on Market to Hyde and Eighth streets, where it will funnel off from Eighth Street and in Civic Center. Don’t even think of driving into this area, because you can’t. Which streets will be closed for SF Pride Parade? Many. Continue reading for the entire list of street closures and Muni reroutes. How to get to the SF Pride Parade You best bet is to take public transit. If you’re coming from outside the city, take BART, which will let your off smack dab on Market Street. If you’re within the city, you can take either BART or Muni, which share stops on Market Street along the parade route. SFMTA staff will also sell fare receipts so you won’t have to wait for a vending machine. Note: Don’t even think of driving to Sunday’s parade and party. Just don’t. What will the weather be like? Sunny and warm. Temperatures should reach the high 60s/low 70s. Smear on your highest SPF if needed. What if I don’t like crowds? Good news: You’re not alone. The SF Pride Parade will air live on KPIX Sunday from 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. It’ll also stream live on KPIX’s website. What streets will be closed? Starting at 9 a.m., Thursday and continuing until 3 p.m., Monday: Fulton Street between Hyde and Larkin streets Grove Street between Polk and Larkin streets Starting at 7 p.m., Thursday and continuing until 6 a.m., Monday: Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place between McAllister and Grove streets Starting at 9 a.m., Friday and continuing until 6 a.m., Monday: Grove Street between Hyde Street and Van Ness Avenue Larkin Street between McAllister and Market streets Starting at 8 p.m., Friday and continuing until 6 a.m., Monday: Dr. Tom Waddell Place between Van Ness Avenue and Polk Street Polk Street between Grove and Market streets McAllister Street between Van Ness Avenue and Leavenworth Street Hyde Street between McAllister and Grove streets Starting at 8 p.m., Saturday and continuing until 6 a.m., Monday: Continuum Place from Golden Gate Avenue to Terminus Elm Street between Van Ness Avenue and Polk Street Golden Gate Avenue between Van Ness Avenue and Leavenworth Street Hyde Street between Turk and McAllister streets Larkin Street between Turk and McAllister streets Polk Street between Turk and McAllister streets Redwood Street between Polk Street and Van Ness Avenue Starting at 12:01 a.m., Sunday and continuing until 5 p.m., Sunday: Leavenworth Street between McAllister and Market streets Sutter Street between Sansome and Market streets Sansome Street (northbound lane only) between Bush and Sutter streets All northbound traffic coming from Ninth Street will be directed to use Hayes Street to either Van Ness Avenue or Franklin Street. Southbound traffic on Polk Street should use Golden Gate Avenue to Hyde Street until Saturday evening when both Hyde Street and Golden Gate Avenue will be closed. Where can I catch a taxi? Lyft and Uber might be tough or amped up with surge pricing. So the city has added temporary taxi stands at specific locations. From 10 a.m., Saturday, June 23 through 9 p.m., Sunday, June 24, there will be limited number of spaces at these locations: The west side of Van Ness, in front of City Hall, eight spaces The north side of Turk Street, east of Polk Street, five spaces Also, why are you driving in SF during Pride Sunday?! If possible, don’t. A post shared by The San Francisco Dyke March (@dykemarchsf) on Aug 3, 2017 at 8:53pm PDT Dyke March, Saturday, June 23 What time does the Dyke March start? 5 p.m. on Saturday. What times does the rally start? Rally begins at 11 a.m. in Dolores Park. What route will the march follow? The march starts from Dolores Street along 18th Street to Valencia Street to 16th Street and up into the Castro to 18th and back to Dolores Park. Which streets will be closed? The following street closures will be required from 9 a.m. to 11:59 p.m.: Dolores Street between 17th and 20th Streets. Intersections: Dolores Street at Dolores Terrace, Dorland, 19th, and Cumberland Streets. Local Access: 19th Street; Cumberland Street; 18th Street between Guerrero and Dolores; 20th Street between Dolores and Church. Which Muni lines will be affected? The following Muni lines and routes will be affected: F Market & Wharves; J Church; 22 Fillmore; 24 Divisadero & Owl; 33 Ashbury/18th Street; 35 Eureka; 37 Corbett; and 55 16th Street.<doc-sep>Immigration on people’s minds at SF Pride events #abc7news pic.twitter.com/mBBA6cLlI1 — Leslie Brinkley (@lrbrinkley) June 24, 2018 Barricades going up for Sunday 10:30 🏳️‍🌈 parade. Take transit!! #abc7news pic.twitter.com/kFlGypuaon — Leslie Brinkley (@lrbrinkley) June 24, 2018 Dyke march underway on 18th St SF. #abc7news pic.twitter.com/qBUQt7BDZX — Leslie Brinkley (@lrbrinkley) June 24, 2018 SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- A large crowd is expected to gather for the Pride Parade in San Francisco on Sunday.On Saturday, thousands gathered at Dolores Park for an afternoon of pride events that culminated in the 26th annual Dyke March . "We all bring our own definition of what it's like to be a queer woman and to be a dyke in this community and this is a moment of being able to express that," sister Yeshe Did said.Much of the political discourse on signs and banners was about immigration. "Pride has always been about heavy politics and rebelling against system that doesn't want us to exist," marcher Dylan Cooke said.San Francisco's Pride Parade starts at 10:30 a.m. along Market Street from Beale to 8th Street. It's expected to last five hours with at least 50,000 participants. "We are expecting one million people just at Civic Center Plaza and for the parade," San Francisco Pride executive director George Ridgely said.Crews put barricades up on Saturday to get streets ready for closures. Public transit is recommended over driving and parking.<doc-sep>The 48th annual Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Parade and March begins at 10:30 a.m. today. The parade starts at Market and Beale streets and ends at Market and Eighth. If you cannot make it to the big shebang—featuring more than 240 contingents, thousands of participants, and more than one million visitors—you can see it live. After all, crowds aren’t for everyone. KPIX will broadcast and livestream the parade today from 10:30 a.m. until about 3:30 p.m. The first hour of the coverage will be a Pride special. You can also watch a truncated version later this evening beginning at 11 p.m. Like every year, the Dykes on Bikes contingent will start the parade. Expect mega corporate company floats to glide up Market alongside resistance-themed protest contingents at today’s march. After the parade, people will gather at Civic Center to dance, mingle, and celebrate queer San Francisco. Watching from home will give viewers a better chance of seeing this year’s grand marshals at the parade: Pose -co-writer and producer Our Lady J, Jose Xtravaganza (member of the legendary House of Xtravaganza), Luis Camacho, Silas Howard, Kin Folkz (educator, founder of the Oakland Pride Creative Arts and Film Fest), Jewelle Gomez, and more. Also of note, there will be many street closures and Muni reroutes happening today. People who want to catch the parade IRL are strongly encouraged to take public transportation. Livestream: KPIX<doc-sep>It’s the most wonderful time of the year: San Francisco’s annual Pride celebration and parade goes down Sunday, and the festivities will features dozens of floats sponsored by Bay Area mainstays, presently being assembled at a fever pitch on Pier 54 by hardworking parade pros at Parade Guys. During a visit this week to the pier and workshop, the scene looked like a hallucinogenic blend of whimsy, camp, and corporate logos, as this year’s floats are being assembled amid leftover materials from past parades still in storage, including beatific remnants of previous Lunar New Year parades. Since these images are mostly of floats that are not yet finished it wouldn’t be fair to critique them from a design perspective, although certain individual elements stand out. Oath’s sterling white faux crystal display plays a welcome contrast to all of the rainbows. Microsoft’s “Who Will You Lift Up?” slogan combined with a variety of LGBTQ+ movement flags actually comes across as (surprisingly) touching. The Japantown pagoda makes a rare appearance alongside other SF iconography. And Netflix’s giant red and black logo is having some trouble fitting in with the accompanying motifs. For a complete list of Pride contingents, check out the entire list. To see all of the final floats in action, Sundays’ parade kicks off at 10:30 a.m. on Market Street.<doc-sep>
“Generations of Strength” is an apt theme for this year’s 48th annual San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Parade, which has morphed into a celebration shared by the young and the not-so-young, the straight and the not-so-straight. In this political climate, the huge parade — which begins downtown roughly at 10:30 a.m. Sunday — will be an opportunity for attendees to have fun and be themselves while keeping in mind the qualities that bind groups across the city, region and nation. The weeklong San Francisco Pride Celebration this year marks the 40th anniversary of the ubiquitous rainbow flag. The event attracts people from all over the globe and is a sincere, yet irreverent, display of diversity. These are the biggest weekend events: Trans March: On Friday, 2-6 p.m., a festival with speakers, information, family area and more; 6 p.m., march; 8 p.m., after-party. Dolores Park, Dolores St. and 19th St., S.F. www.transmarch.org/trans-march-2018 Pink Triangle: Installation & Commemoration Ceremony: On Saturday, 7-10 a.m. installation; 10:30 a.m. ceremony. De-installation 5:30-8 p.m. Sunday. Twin Peaks, S.F. www.thepinktriangle.com S.F. Pride Celebration: On Saturday, a celebration of diversity, freedom, self-expression and solidarity with live entertainment, food, exhibits and more. Noon-6 p.m. Saturday; 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Sunday, June 24. $1 donation encouraged. Civic Center Plaza, 355 McAllister St., S.F. www.sfpride.org Dyke March: On Saturday, celebrate community, diversity and free expression. March begins at 5 p.m. at Dolores Park; rally programming begins at 11 a.m. Dolores Park, Dolores St. and 19th St., S.F. www.thedykemarch.org Full list of events: For more, see our complete list. A Pride weekend bar guide: San Francisco’s gay bar scene remains among the finest in the country, and Pride weekend in particular sees these dives, dance clubs and watering holes at their sparkliest. Institutions like Harvey’s pay tribute to such pioneers as Harvey Milk, the first openly gay elected official in California history; drag shows like Oasis and Aunt Charlie’s satisfy the “RuPaul’s Drag Race” fan in any of us; while spots like the Stud — the first cooperatively owned nightclub in the country — continue to make history of their own. This year, The Chronicle’s Pride bar guide includes cannabis lounges where Pride-goers can enjoy legal recreational marijuana for the first time. See the full list of bars, clubs and hot spots. Where to eat during Pride weekend: From boozy to brunchable, San Francisco offers a ton of options for Pride weekend tourists and locals looking to have a good time. Check out our 28 picks for spots to grab a bite and, maybe, toast diversity in the city this weekend. Read our full offering of San Francisco Pride 2018 stories and guides. Lizzie Johnson is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: ljohnson@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @LizzieJohnsonnn