SF’s First Ever Rainbow Flag Raising in Japantown (Peace Plaza)

Join the Japantown Rainbow Coalition for a day of programming, speakers, and performances right in the center of Japantown. Starting at 12PM, with emcee Kristi Yummykochi, join us for a performance by Jiten Taiko, words of wisdom from District 5 Supervisor Dean Preston and Amy Sueyoshi, and the celebration of the raising of the progress pride flag in S.F. Japantown. And you can stop by the Japantown businesses before or after for lunch or dinner, shopping, learning about Japantown history, or check out the exhibit at the National Japanese American Historical Society! The flag will be flown in the plaza from June 3rd to June 6th to celebrate Queer and Trans Asian Pacific Islander Week (QTAPI Week) and Pride month.

The rainbow coalition has championed the raising of the rainbow flag to proudly proclaim our intersecting identities and show that people of LGBTQ+ identities don’t just live in the Tenderloin, SoMA or the Castro, but also places like Japantown. San Francisco has long been known as an epicenter for LGBTQ+ organizing and celebration, especially during the month of June, Pride Month. The City has a rich history of LGBTQ+ activism and we hope to continue that tradition and highlight the hidden history of LGBTQ+ communities and people in Japantown that a model minority myth often conceals. For example, it was in 1954 that the Japantown YMCA hosted the very first convention of the Mattachine Society, one of the earliest gay liberation organizations. In fact, the YMCA holds the designation of being the fourth property on the West Coast listed on the National Register of Historic Places for LGBTQ significance.

The Japantown Rainbow Coalition is a group of Japantown community members organizing to raise the Pride Flag. The group appreciates the support from the community organizations and local businesses and merchants and the project is sponsored by the San Francisco Chapter of the JACL with community support from the Berkeley Chapter of the Japanese American Citizens League, Omusubi, and the San Francisco Buddhist Church.