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That wasn’t the case in 1972, when artist-filmmaker Ronald Chase, 85, made “Parade,” a 10-minute documentary of the modest San Francisco gathering in which he interviewed gay people about their experiences (screening online in this year’s Frameline Showcase with a Q&A on June 25).īut at the onset of AIDS, things changed from a party, to fear and shock, said LGBT activist Ken Jones, the first African American president of the board of directors, whose tenure included controversy over whether to add the word lesbian to the then-named Gay Freedom Day Parade. Though SF Pride’s parade and Civic Center party aren’t happening for its 50th anniversary this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the festival has a $3.5 million budget and bills itself as “the largest gathering of LBGT people and their allies in the nation.” Last year’s parade included nearly 300 contingents before this year’s cancellations, 1 million people were expected to attend. “Pride goes in cycles,” said Teddy Basham-Witherington, SF Pride’s first executive director, who served in the position from 1997 to 2006.Īs the event evolved from, “boys dancing onstage to a “real multicultural festival” during his tenure, he said, “We took heat, but we were glad.” Ever-changing and ever-growing, San Francisco Pride has had its share of ups and downs, celebrations and challenges.