Friday events kick off jam-packed SF Pride weekend with trans march and illuminating flag

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- San Francisco's annual trans march took place Friday night.

The event drew a huge crowd.

Some people, like Reno resident Sara Spence, even coming from around the country to participate.

A journey she says is worth it, not just for her but also for those who can't march for themselves.

"They need to hear that there is hope. That there is love over here," said Spence.

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Organizers tell us this is one of the biggest marches they've ever had.

That means thousands of people here on the streets of San Francisco fighting for a community they say is under increasing attack.

A growing number of anti-trans laws have been making their way through legislatures nationwide.

And people here believe the theme of this year's Pride of 'resistance in action' is more important than ever.

"I've been doing this for about 30 years myself and it is a hard time to be one of us. The government hates us and they're making us the new monster," said Spence.

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A few hours later across town there was another kind of Pride celebration.

For the fifth year in a row, San Francisco-based nonprofit Illuminate lit up Market Street with the world's largest Pride flag.

"We have seven beams on the bottom that are the beams we're used to using. But we've also created seven beams on the top that have a tighter beam radius. And so we think we can play with patterns in a slightly different way," said Illuminate's Ben Davis.

And with the events just beginning, Illuminate says they hope their work is a reminder to be true to yourself all weekend long.

"Your main journey in life is to find out who you are and be that person. And San Francisco is the most welcoming place in the world to make that happen," said Davis.