Plan your weekend with our Pride guide

When a group of patrons at a Greenwich Village gay bar resisted a police raid 50 years ago this week, they probably never imagined that one day on an opposite coast there would be an annual celebration sparked by their defiance. The 49th San Francisco Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Pride Parade isn’t just a tradition in the Bay Area — it’s as much a part of our region’s lifeblood as the fog or Napa Valley Cabernet. After the Stonewall riots sparked the modern gay rights movement in 1969, the momentum spread to San Francisco the following year with the city’s first “Gay Freedom Day Parade” as it was then known. This year’s theme, “Generations of Resistance,” honors traditions of advocacy and action in San Francisco and the LGBTQ community with grand marshals Mrs. Vera, Vince Crisostomo, Ms. Billie Cooper and Donna Personna representing veterans of the fight for equality.

Pride weekend encompasses multiple events, including the Trans March on Friday, June 28, and the Dyke March on Saturday, June 29, both at Dolores Park. The Pride Parade and the Civic Center celebration that follows bring the weekend to a close on Sunday, June 30. The event is thought to be the largest Pride parade in the world, with contingents representing everything from community organizations and favorite drag performers to major corporations. This year, the official SF Pride calendar ranges from a bird-watching walk to a Pride shabbat. Use this Pride guide to decide where to eat and drink, and where to consume cannabis, as well as what to read and check out around town besides the official activities.

— Tony Bravo