In 1975, the city of San Diego issued Homann a parade permit, and the parade traveled along Broadway to Fifth Avenue and then to Balboa Park, where Jessop and I addressed a crowd of 400.īefore then, life was different for homosexuals in California. Some individuals wore brown paper bags over their heads, as shocked nearby residents launched homophobic verbal attacks. That year over a small group of us marched from the Center for Social Services on B Street to Balboa Park and back, avoiding arrest for unlawful assembly by marching on the sidewalk. The police sergeant not only refused to issue the permit, he also threatened us with arrest and told us that there would never be a gay parade in San Diego. When we informed police staff why we were there, they quickly realized we were homosexuals and denied us a permit. Pride in San Diego began 46 years ago when Vietnam veteran Jess Jessop, ACLU attorney Tom Homann and I visited the San Diego Police Department to secure a parade permit for a planned “gay march.” At the time I was living as a transgender drag queen, leading police officials at the desk to at first assume I was female.
