“To reach Civic Center, the route turned just once, veering to the right at United Nations Plaza,” says Koskovich. The 1978 parade began on Market Street and ended with a festival in front of San Francisco City Hall. By 1978, the event boasted almost a quarter of a million revellers from across the United States and, indeed, the globe. The first had occurred eight years prior, attracting just a handful of marchers. On 25 June 1978, San Franciscans across the city celebrated Gay Freedom Day, as the annual Pride celebration was then known. When it comes to the rainbow flag, we know, for sure, how and when things began.
