LeatherWalk
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Fundraising for the Sidewalk Plaques continues! Click here to donate!
LeatherWalk is a cherished annual fundraiser and celebration, held each September on the Sunday preceding the Folsom Street Fair.
Established in 1992 by Art Tomaszewski, the LeatherWalk tradition brings together the leather, kink, and LGBTQ communities to celebrate their heritage, enhance visibility, and raise essential funds. You can view the full history of LeatherWalk here.
Since 2021, LeatherWalk has been organized by the LEATHER & LGBTQ Cultural District in the South of Market (SOMA) area of San Francisco.
You can explore photos of the 2021 LeatherWalk, the 2022 LeatherWalk, and the 2023 LeatherWalk,
The 2024 LeatherWalk took place on Sunday, September 22. Participants gathered at City Hall at 11 am, and walked proudly through SOMA, pausing for entertainment and refreshments at favorite venues. The walk concluded at Eagle Plaza with the raising of the Leather Pride Flag during the SF Eagle’s Leather Pride Fest. You can find a full writeup of LeatherWalk 2024 here.
Photos and video of the 2024 LeatherWalk can be viewed here.
The LeatherWalk event always fosters community spirit, encourages self-expression, and plays a crucial role in preserving the historical and cultural identity of our leather & LGBTQ communities. It serves as the celebratory opening of San Francisco’s Leather Week. Participation is always free, and everyone is welcome to join in.
However, the event is also, historically and culturally, a major community fundraiser. Donations from businesses, organizations. and individuals are strongly encouraged.
In 2024, all funds raised through LeatherWalk went to directly support the Leather Legacy Landmarks initiative: the installation of 77 commemorative sidewalk plaques, honoring the legacy of key businesses and venues that have served the community since the 1960s. You can read about the Leather Legacy Landmarks–and view a list of the planned plaque locations–here.
Based on input from a “roundtable” of community leaders, folks were encouraged to sign up as individual fundraisers (regardless of their personal ability to contribute), and community groups like the 15 Association, Onyx Northwest, and the Phoenix Family formed themselves into fundraising teams.
Several of these fundraising teams selected historical locations within SOMA, and set a goal to raise the $4,000 needed to have a plaque manufactured and installed at that particular location. As a result of one such effort, a plaque will soon be installed at 288 7th Street to honor Gauntlet Enterprises, the pioneering body piercing enterprise founded by Jim Ward and rooted in the leather community.
Also in 2024, the LEATHER & LGBTQ Cultural District received assistance from specialists at Do Good Stuff, who provided consultation and support, not only to the Board and staff of the Cultural District in planning the fundraising, but also to individual fundraisers and fundraising teams. They created a very useful Guide to Click and Pledge (the software tool that the Cultural District uses to handle its fundraising and donations). You can also view the Fundraising Guide that they helped the Cultural District create here.
Overall, LeatherWalk 2024 raised over $13,000 towards its $22,000 goal of funding the installation of the first 17 plaques, all on Folsom Street.
Planning has already begun for LeatherWalk 2025. Organizers, Fundraisers and Volunteers will be needed. You can be kept informed by joining the LEATHER & LGBTQ Cultural District mailing list.
Even better, you can become a member of the LEATHER & LGBTQ Cultural District, a 501(c)3 organization that has been working to keep SOMA kinky and queer since 2018.
Thank you.