SF's Pink Saturday Is Back On

San Francisco's often tumultuous Pink Saturday street party, held on the day before the Pride parade, was canceled last month after the withdrawal of its longtime sponsor, the Sisters Of Perpetual Indulgence, who cited the event's "escalation of violence." But today the San Francisco LGBT Community Center stepped in to run this year's party with a promise of increased security. From their announcement:

We are honored and humbled to continue the legacy of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. We share their commitment to bringing together our diverse LGBT communities across age, race, culture, income and geography. As an affordable event that is well attended by young people, it is an essential component of Pride weekend. For many of us Pride weekend represents a set of magic moments where we are free to be our authentic selves in a public and supportive setting.

We are committed to community safety and creating public spaces that are free from violence. As Pink Saturday has historically been the destination for many of the tens of thousands participants of Dyke March as well as the Saturday Pride festival, creating a strong infrastructure for our community to gather is critical to the success of Pride weekend. Our leadership of a celebration that is safe, fun and welcoming for everyone is part of that vision. This year’s event will feature expanded entertainment and increased security to promote a celebratory and safe environment.

(Tipped by JMG reader Steve)

RELATED: Pink Saturday has long been criticized for its unruly crowds. Last year two Sisters were assaulted and two women were attacked by a group of six men. In 2013 a woman was brutally beaten and robbed during the event. Her attacker was later sentenced to six years in prison. In 2010, three people were shot and one young man was killed during a gang-related altercation on Pink Saturday.

SF's Pink Saturday Event Is Canceled

San Francisco's often tumultuous Pink Saturday street party, held on the day before the Pride parade, has been canceled for this year. Via press release from the Sisters Of Perpetual Indulgence:

Pink Saturday has had a history of great joy for the community over the years. During the time it has been produced by the Sisters it has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for community non-profits. Pink Saturday has been a very successful event and has grown immensely since the early 90s. Unfortunately with that growth comes an increase in challenges. “Pink Saturday has been increasingly difficult to produce in recent years,” says Sister Selma Soul, coordinator of the event for the years 2012, 2013 and 2014. “An escalation in violence associated with the event convinced us last summer that the event needed to significantly change if we were to produce it again.”

After months of meetings with community members, Supervisor Scott Wiener, the SFPD, and various city agencies, no clear vision for the event has been developed that addresses the concerns of the community, our volunteers and our members. Without a clear vision this close to Pride Weekend, The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence have voted to suspend planning for 2015 and will not be applying for a street closure in the Castro for Saturday, June 27, 2015. The Sisters may explore new manifestations of “Pink Saturday” in future years, but at this time we are suspending production. As a group composed solely of volunteers with no paid staff, the challenges that have grown with the event are simply too great for our organization to address.

Pink Saturday has long been criticized for its unruly crowds. Last year two Sisters were assaulted  and two women were attacked by a group of six men. In 2013 a woman was brutally beaten and robbed during the event. Her attacker was later sentenced to six years in prison. In 2010, three people were shot and one young man was killed during a gang-related altercation on Pink Saturday.

SAN FRANCISCO: Assaults Mar Pink Saturday, Public Asked For Help

Two separate but possibly related assaults marred San Francisco's Pink Saturday celebration in the Castro. From the Facebook page of Stop The Violence:

During Pink Saturday a Sister in white face and habbit who was working the event on behalf of the community, and her husband, were physically and verbally assaulted by a group of up to seven people at the intersection of Castro Street & 18th Street. Both received some injuries and are naturally very shaken by the whole incident, but fortunately neither required hospitalization. If you witnessed this incident, or if you have photographs or video of the incident, please contact Mission Police Station. We want to work with investigators to assist them in identifying the suspects and bringing them to justice.

And from the San Francisco Examiner:

Two women were assaulted in what police are investigating as a possible hate crime in South of Market on Pink Saturday. The two victims, ages 27 and 24, were walking southbound on Ninth Street near Mission Street about 4:33 p.m. when six men attacked them, police said. The 24-year-old victim was reportedly kicked and punched several times and sustained abrasions to her head, police said. The 27-year-old sustained a broken wrist. Both women were hospitalized briefly, but their injuries were not life-threatening. One of the suspects made derogatory comments to the victims, police said, before the group fled. There were few details about the suspects available Monday and no arrests were reported.

Pink Saturday has long been criticized for its often unruly crowds. Last year a woman was brutally beaten and robbed during the event. Her attacker was sentenced to six years in prison last month. In 2010, three people were shot and one young man was killed during a gang-related altercation on Pink Saturday.