Oakland Pride Day

Of course, it doesn’t compare to San Francisco’s Pride, but who’s comparing? You will definitely be disappointed if you compared other Bay Area Prides to that of San Francisco’s. San Francisco has had their Pride events for forty fabulous years! Oakland had their first Pride in 1997… and this year (2010) was the first Pride in six years, with hopes of becoming an annual event. You just gotta go and enjoy it for what it is… a great city coming together to celebrate their PRIDE!!!
For five bucks, I got to see Chaka Khan!!! That woman looks and sounds amazing! Her mic wasn’t as loud as her back up singers, but you could hear her when she hits those notes! Oh, those notes! That voice! I think I’m still in awe. Other than the rapper Yo-​Yo, I can’t say I was that familiar with the rest of the lineup of performers. They managed to pack four stages in this little Pride. Music was all around me! The energy was amazing. It was packed, but not uncomfortably crowded.
I do hope they make this an annual event. Oakland is a proud city, so I have high hopes for their Pride.