rewrite this content and keep HTML tags Mayhem ensues amid a flash mob by Popstar Booty Camp for Halloween in San Francisco’s Castro District on Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhOn Saturday, Castro Street’s sidewalks filled with costumed people and local merchants, with a zombie flash mob in Jane Warner Plaza dancing to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller,” twice. Twin Peaks Tavern and Orphan Andy’s Restaurant were filled with revelers. Inside the Castro Theatre, thematic films screened from 1 p.m. to midnight, and the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence held a costume contest.The event was a calmer reimagining of one of San Francisco’s most famous – and least manageable – traditions. In its heyday, Halloween in the Castro was legendary for its size and extravagance and, at its best, it was a flash of queer joy and self-expression. But throughout its history, the tradition was plagued by homophobia and violence. San Francisco’s early gay Halloween parties took place in Polk Gulch in the 1960s and ’70s. Even as San Francisco was becoming an LGBTQ+ haven, dressing outside of the norms of one’s assigned gender was illegal into the 1970s. The Polk Street event provided a safe place for queer people to dress up without fearing arrest. AdvertisementArticle continues below this adBarbenheimer materializes at Orphan Andy’s in the Castro District as portrayed by Angel Brosowsky and her boyfriend Eric Golant of the Excelsior District on Saturday night, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhBut the Polk Street parties also attracted bad actors: straight men looking for fights. Over the years, attendees were beaten and stabbed. The violence came to a head at a 1977 Halloween celebration, when somebody threw a tear gas canister into the crowd, causing a panic. That same night, a gay waiter was found dead in an apartment from a stab wound, still wearing the costume he wore on Polk Street.After that, the party moved to the Castro. The neighborhood’s gay scene was growing, and it seemed like a more hospitable venue. At the time, the Castro was holding kids’ parades each year on Halloween and the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence eventually took over party planning. But as the new Castro party took root, the parade – and the ability to manage the crowds – fizzled out. Over the years, the party ballooned in size and once again violence and clashes broke out. 300,000 people attended in 1994 and the chaos spurred the Sisters to withdraw from event planning in 1995. A staggering half a million people showed up in 2002.AdvertisementArticle continues below this adThe street party met its sudden end in 2006 when a fight broke out and somebody fired a gun into the crowd; nine people were hit by bullets. Halloween at the Castro was over. The next year, the city sent 600 police officers to the area to prevent another gathering.The Barbie world and universe dominated as a popular overall Halloween costume theme in San Francisco’s Castro District on Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhWhile it seemed for a while like the Castro’s Halloween tradition would be gone for good, Manny Yekutiel, owner of Manny’s and co-founder of San Francisco’s Civic Joy Fund, was behind the push to bring back the event this year, according to the Bay Area Reporter. The Civic Joy Fund pledged over $100,000 to reimburse merchants for hosting events, like parties and tarot readings. Here are some of the best photos from the event:AdvertisementArticle continues below this adThe drag show party’s about to get started at Freeborn clothing shop in San Francisco’s Castro District on Saturday night, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhThe guys from Hooters start their Halloween Saturday night in San Francisco’s Castro District on Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhUndead costumes pop full of color in the Castro District amid the festive neighborhood’s Halloween celebrations on Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhThe Castro District hosts a Halloween weekend for the first time in a long time in San Francisco, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhAdvertisementArticle continues below this adDemond Perrotto of the Castro District agonizes over trying to get another drink amidst Halloween in San Francisco’s Castro District on Saturday afternoon, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhThe Castro Disrict Halloween celebration kicks off in the iconic and festive San Francisco neighborhood on Saturday afternoon, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhQueen Amidala is brought to life by Niana Liu of Cole Valley for the Halloween Contest at the Castro Theatre in San Francisco on Saturday night, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhGremlin JZ Guerrero of the Inner Sunset, 14 months, brings his parents Miguel and Zef to the Halloween festivities in San Francisco’s Castro District on Saturday afternoon, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhAdvertisementArticle continues below this adTed Lasso, as channeled by Alex McMullin, shows up to motivate the Castro Halloween crowd in San Francisco on Saturday afternoon, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhMany revelers showed up dressed in full costume for the Castro District’s Halloween festivities on Saturday afternoon, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhJohnathan Clevinger, left, and boyfriend Gio Aquino of SOMA channel The Simpsons’ Patty and Selma outside Beaux in the Castro District on Saturday night, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhA pedestrian passes through a crosswalk on Market Street dressed both for Halloween and Dîa de los Muertos in San Francisco’s Castro District on Saturday night, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhAdvertisementArticle continues below this adContests line up amid the Halloween Costume Contest at the Castro Theatre in San Francisco on Saturday night, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhA zombie cruises the streets in San Francisco’s Castro District amid the Halloween festivities on Saturday night, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhJim Reinhart of Sacramento and Denise Van Alstine of San Francisco’s Glen Park go all out as The Riddler and Poison Ivy for Halloween in the Castro on Saturday night, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhStylish revelers pull up decked out to the nines for Halloween weekend in San Francisco’s Castro District early on Saturday evening, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhAdvertisementArticle continues below this adRandy Macho Man Savage and Hulk Hogan take in the Halloween Costume Contest at the Castro Theatre on Saturday night, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhThe Pope flexes hard with his new set of grills in San Francisco’s Castro District on Saturday night, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhBob Ross in the Castro District amid the festive neighborhood’s Halloween celebrations on Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhLinette Escobar of the Inner Richmond shows off her cool cat club costume in front of clothing botique Freeborn in San Francisco’s Castro District on Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhAdvertisementArticle continues below this adAll smiles for Halloween weekend in San Francisco’s Castro District on Saturday afternoon, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhSister Prioress Hellen Wheels and the ghost of Dianne Feinstein look on as judges of the Halloween Costume Contest at the iconic Castro Theatre on Saturday night, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhPaul Loesel of the Castro District, left, and Carlos Castrillo and husband Jerry LaBarge of Lower Nob Hill pose for Halloween weekend in front of the 440 Castro bar on Saturday afternoon, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhEmma Sanford of the Mission District gets her face painted for Halloween in San Francisco’s Castro District on Saturday afternoon, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhAdvertisementArticle continues below this adThe Castro Theatre goes big for the Halloween Costume Contest on Saturday night, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhReno 911 and other costumes in the Castro District amid the festive neighborhood’s Halloween celebrations on Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhScooby-Doo gets some work done at Philz Coffee before a big Halloween party night in San Francisco’s Castro District on Saturday afternoon, Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhRevelers show up early for Halloween Saturday night in San Francisco’s Castro District on Oct. 28, 2023.Kevin Kelleher & Emily TrinhAdvertisementArticle continues below this ad
Halloween in the Castro returns to SF, but without the chaos
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