dandy-boi-ftm:

jaysroy:

“gay couples should be allowed to show affection/pda/kiss at pride” and “kink doesn’t belong at pride, especially not events with minors” are not contradictory statements and idk why y’all think they are

In San Francisco Leather Culture is very much linked to the gay community because the Miracle Mile known currently as SoMa was once home to over 30 queer businesses. A lot of leather culture started because queer men brought to SF after WWII couldn’t return home because of dishonorable discharges. The businesses there was essentially home to queer men rebuilding the comraderie they had during war time… as part of Motorcycle clubs… without the motorcycles (the old guard)The Miracle Mile was the area that Life Magazine did it’s famous article “homosexuality in America”.

It is still home to Folsom Street which has quite a few leather businesses. And Folsom Street Fair and Up Your Alley (Dore Alley) are Street festivals celebrating kink that raises funds for community programs helping people displaced by gentrification and also many various queer community based organizations.

So yeah kink and leather is a huge part of SF pride but like the Radical Faeries Village (they got some clothing optional rave going on), Leather Alley also has their sections of SF Pride behind tarps where volunteers check for ID before entry.

So at least for San Francisco Pride, the leather and kink community in my opinion belongs because they do an large amount of precautions to prevent minors from entering spaces where people are participating in what can be scene as sexual situations. And all the major leather and kink groups do a lot of advocacy and fundraising for queer causes.

Ive been going to pride when i was little and there were always leather guys there and i turned out ok. I just thought they were policemen because of the hats.