It's not the Lesbian Parade, it's the Dyke March, and that wording might tell you everything you need to know about the event's 24th incarnation this past Saturday. The festivities began, as is traditional, in Dolores Park: The weather was hot this year, and to no one's surprise in particular, revelers left a mess, as the Chron reported in detail.
Things started moving at around 6 p.m., and notably the March returned this year to its old route after last year a group splintered off and overwhelmed a police barrier to protest a new one and retake the original. That move was in keeping with the historic spirit of Dyke March. "When Dykes took over the intersection of Market and Castro in 1993, they were fighting for their lives, visibility, safety, and inclusion," march organizers have written. "At that time, the word 'dyke' was hurled as an insult to cut us down and erase our experience. It was reclaimed as an identity as a big FUCK YOU to our oppressors."
This year, as in years past, the patriarchy was on notice and jubilance mingled with defiance. Here, a few images from the March.
