There are many places around the world that I would love to visit. From time to time, I’ll ask myself and others, if you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go and why? I like this question because everyone usually has a different answer and justification for their choice. For me, I have a continuous list of places I’d like to visit. Naturally, I am drawn to more diverse and inclusive communities. There are a few reasons for this. First, I grew up in a small, conservative town that had no apparent diverse community or neighborhood. I know what it’s like to grow up in a place with little to no diversity. In effect, the inclusiveness of my hometown reflected this trend. Second, city form and function is very interesting to me. I like to acknowledge different aspects of a city, then apply those aspects to grasp a better understanding of the city. Third, diverse and inclusive communities tend to be more creative. Creative cities are increasingly important in city planning efforts today. One aspect that contributes to this increasing importance is representation of the LGBT community in a city. As a whole, the LGBT community has the potential to innovate creative cities by establishing a sense of inclusion and diversity.
After some research, I decided to examine San Francisco, California. The city is home to various attractions, such as Alcatraz Island, the Golden State Bridge, cable cars, and the Painted Ladies. Mostly all of these attractions are recognized through TV shows, movies, or social media. San Francisco’s official travel page highlights these attractions on the front page. The website also includes information for activities, shopping, dining, hotels, events, nightlife, and arts and culture. Within each subcategory, one can select a neighborhood within the city to see what events are going on there. Most of these neighborhoods offer diverse cultural events. According to the City & County of San Francisco’s Department of Human Resources, they are committed to creating a “diverse, inclusive, and equitable community.” More specifically, San Francisco is known as home to one of the largest LGBT communities in the world.
San Francisco is also home to the Castro District, an LGBT neighborhood that is recognized worldwide. The Castro District’s reputation as an LGBT neighborhood attracts many tourists. This district is mainly located along Market Street, one of the busiest roads in San Francisco, and Castro Street. Along Market Street, one can find the F-Line Streetcar. The F-Line Street Car is run by the San Francisco Municipal Railway. It’s considered to be one of three historic lines in San Francisco. In this neighborhood, one can find historical buildings, such as the Castro Theatre and the GLBT Museum. The Castro Theatre is known for its elegant architecture and historical aura. Despite how old the building is, movies and events are still shown there today. The GLBT Museum is another important site for the Castro District. According to the museum’s website, the museum was founded in 1985. Since then, the GLBT Museum is recognized for its cultivation and preservation of LGBT history. Another interesting attraction is the Human Rights Campaign Action Center and Store, which is located at Harvey Milk’s home. Harvey Milk is an important figure to San Francisco and the LGBT community for being the first openly gay man elected to public office. The Castro District offers a wide array of LGBT history. These historical roots can contribute to the branding of the neighborhood as a cultural LGBT hub.
The Castro District has a lot to offer for arts and entertainment. Two major events that occur annually in the neighborhood are the Castro Street Fair and the San Francisco Pride Month. The Castro Street Fair occurs every October at the intersection of Market and Castro Street. This event was founded by the historical San Francisco icon, Harvey Milk. Local vendors, artists, residents, and tourists gather around the intersection of Market and Castro Street to celebrate the neighborhood’s inclusive and diverse attributes. Another popular event is Gay Pride Month. San Francisco’s Pride Month is one of the largest LGBT events in the world. The whole month is dedicated to celebrating LGBT culture and inclusivity. At San Francisco’s most recent pride event, nearly 1 million people gathered to celebrate pride month. Both events brand the neighborhood and the city positively. One of the most important impacts is that these events bring the community together and increases a sense of belonging. This concept is known as boosterism, which explains how cities may use certain events to improve their overall image as a city. These events also produce a multiplier effect for San Francisco’s local economy. The multiplier effect occurs when an event or culture increases capital for a certain area. Events like the Castro Street Fair and San Francisco Pride Month attract a wide array of tourists from around the world, which then increases consumption of goods and services.
The impact of LGBT communities is further examined in research done by Richard Florida. Florida used The Gay Index to determine the impact of LGBT demographics. He examined that the gay community can typically predict innovation and growth of creative cities. This is mostly because the LGBT is inclusive and diverse compared to other communities. One of the most interesting results from his analysis is that the Gay Index correlates with the High-Tech Index. What this means is that the gay community is good at predicting high-tech industry (Florida). In his book, The Rise of the Creative Class, Florida highlights that San Francisco has a high rank for both of these indices. The most important outcome from his research is that LGBT communities tend to be more open and diverse compared to other communities.
Representation of cultural communities is an increasingly important aspect for the future of city planning. In the past, communities were intentionally segregated by ethnicity and culture. This has caused negative impacts in many cities today by creating a strong sense of segregation and weak sense of inclusion and diversity. San Francisco can act as a model for the future of planning for a variety of reasons. The city successfully creates a sense of inclusion and diversity, mainly with its representation of the gay community in neighborhoods such as the Castro District. Events and historical buildings draw residents and visitors to the area, creating a sense of boosterism and increase of the multiplier effect. Through further investigation, these observations are confirmed by the research of the Gay and High-Tech Indices in Richard Florida’s book The Rise of the Creative Class. In conclusion, LGBT culture positively impacts cities by increasing diversity and inclusion.