One affair you apparently won't acquisition at Oakland's aboriginal LGBT Pride Arrangement on Sunday: partially clad men in covering chaps.
What you will acquisition is the Jolly Trolly from Children's Fairyland, pony rides, aged blaze engines and singer/drummer Sheila E. Instead of blame off with Dykes on Bikes, as is the attitude in San Francisco, Oakland's arrangement starts with Tykes on Trikes.
"We had some covering groups from San Francisco who capital to come, and we affably declined. We appetite to accumulate this G-rated," said Carlos Uribe, one of the organizers. "We don't appetite to attempt with San Francisco Pride, we aloof appetite to action a added family-friendly, assorted celebration. Arrangement of an end-of-summer bookend to SF Pride."
Oakland - home to added same-sex families than about any burghal in the country - is accretion its acceptable Pride affair this year with a seven-block arrangement up Broadway. The accident includes an all-day music anniversary in the Uptown neighborhood, with four stages and children's activities alignment from a cuddle zoo to boob shows.
For Oakland, it's a arrangement of affair for its usually easygoing but ever-increasing LGBT community.
"We've consistently been a little beneath affected in Oakland, but that doesn't beggarly we don't accept a lot to celebrate," Uribe said. "We're diverse, we're welcoming, and let's face it, it's a lot cheaper to accession kids in the East Bay than in San Francisco."
For the accomplished few decades, Oakland - with its almost affordable homes and assorted association - has agilely admiring LGBT families attractive for an another to the Castro and Folsom Street affair arena and the high-level political activism of San Francisco. According to the Urban Institute, Oakland has the country's second-highest cardinal of same-sex households and the third-highest absorption of same-sex couples with children.
Family-friendly parade
Those LGBT families are broadcast in every adjacency in Oakland and represent every indigenous accumulation and bread-and-butter class, aggregate in with the city's accepted accoutrements of ancestral and indigenous groups.
The burghal has hosted a Pride fest on and off back the 1990s, but the accepted apotheosis started bristles years ago with the ambition of eventually aperture an LGBT association center. Last year, organizers polled the festival's 30,000 attendees about what they'd like to see at approaching fests, and 80 percent said they capital a parade.
"We're activity to be the best family-friendly Pride arrangement anywhere, ever," said Amber Todd, armchair of Oakland Pride. "We'll accept article for anybody - gay, straight, pansexual, kids. My 75-year-old mother's coming, and she's as beeline as the day is long."
This actuality a mayoral acclamation year in Oakland, attendees can apprehend to see all 15 candidates marching, forth with the arrangement of floats and boot bands usually apparent at a Fourth of July parade.
Among the marchers will be ample contingents from the city's badge and blaze departments. Officer Johnna Watson, the city's badge spokeswoman, will be a appreciative participant, she said.
"It's absolutely important for us to appearance not aloof the assortment of Oakland, but the assortment aural the Badge Department," she said. "We're absolutely attractive advanced to it."
Multiple victories
Grand align is Joe Hawkins, a 25-year adept of LGBT pride contest in the East Bay. He's lobbied for decades for gay accepting aural the African American association and for beneath racism aural the LGBT movement.
"It has not been accessible for gay bodies of color. You're hit with a bifold dosage of discrimination. Actually, added like amateur dose," he said. "But actuality in Oakland, we're aloof all aloof one Pride. Everyone's welcome, and it's a astounding thing."
Hawkins, 50, a administration consultant, is a architect of Oakland Pride and has served as admirable align of San Francisco's Pride parade. With the amends of same-sex alliance and re-election of President Obama, he's activity abnormally optimistic these days.
"We're adulatory assorted victories. We've apparent so abundant progress," he said. "People bethink about the past, and I acquaint them, 'Hey, these are the acceptable old days.' "
Celebration Sunday
The Oakland Pride Arrangement starts at 10:30 a.m. Sunday at 14th Street and Broadway and ends at 21st and Broadway. The music anniversary is from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at 20th and Broadway.
For information, go to www.oaklandpride.org.
Carolyn Jones is a San Francisco Chronicle agents writer. E-mail: carolynjones@sfchronicle.com