Welcome to The Castro, one of the first gay neighborhoods in the US!
Currently, you're standing in the Pink Triangle Memorial Park, which is the first historical landmark in the USA remembering LGBT victims persecuted in Fascist Europe between 1933-1945. The Pink Triangle Memorial was formally dedicated in 2001. There are 15 pink and grey granite triangular pylons, each representing 1,000 men killed in concentration camps. There is also a large Pink Triangle made of rose quartz stones that sits among the pink rose bushes as a symbol of love, healing and pride. According to their website, you are invited to take a single stone 'as a remembrance to those lost and to also spread a message of hope & peace throughout the world.' The stones are replenished to make this continuous gift possible.
If you look across the stree you'll see the intersection of Market, Castro, and 17th streets, home to many classic Castro restaurants and bars. This neighborhood has gone through quite an evolution throughout the history of San Francisco, but it's rise as the gay mecca it is today started in the '60's around the Summer of Love. By the 70's, because of the investments of the the gay community, The Castro had become a fashionable urban center. Since then The Castro has had its up and downs, but today The Castro is a site of economic success and people come to San Francisco from all over the world specifically to visit the neighborhood. In 2019, because of the historic events, marches, and protests that have taken and continue to take place here, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors formally named the neighborhood 'The Castro LGBTQ Cultural District.'
Besides amazing events throughout the year, there are a ton of things to do in The Castro, like visiting the LGBT History Museum, the LGBTQ Walk of Fame, and the Castro Street History Walk.
If you're visiting from out of town, Welcome! I hope you enjoy visiting this awesome part of San Francisco!