By Kate Brown, Ph.D.–
Over the course of the last nine months, the San Francisco Bay Times has invited us to introduce members of the San Francisco Dykes on Bikes (SFDOB) Women’s Motorcycle Contingent (WMC). SFDOB is organized into Officers, a Board of Directors, Emeritus Patch Holders, Active Patch Holders, non-Active Patch Holders, Prospects, and Participants. Each designation is indicative of a different level of engagement. And while we have hundreds of motorcyclists who join us at the end of June as we ride down Market Street to kick off the SF LGBTQ+ Pride Parade, very few are full Active Patch-holding members of SFDOB.
The road to protecting “Dykes on Bikes” for nonprofit use in the LGBTQ+ community was long and winding. And while “long and winding” are features we look for on rides, they weren’t ones we anticipated when we embarked on what ended up being a 13-year legal battle to register the name and logo Dykes on Bikes with the United States Patent Trademark Office. Nor did we foresee that our stops on the journey would include the Supreme Court of the United States where we argued, in part, that we have a heightened protection for political speech, including the self-referential use of the term “Dyke,” under the First Amendment.
Thus, to earn and be awarded Active Patch Holder status with the San Francisco Dykes on Bikes WMC is an honor. By earning and displaying the Dykes on Bikes patch, a rider is connected with 45 years of history, a legacy of reclaimed speech, the people who fought to protect its use in the LGTBQ+ community, and a community of fellow patch-holders in Dykes on Bikes chapters around the world.
With that, I would like to welcome our newest Active Patch Holders, Melissa C. and Michelle R. Melissa and Michelle separately declared their interest in joining SFDOB as Prospects last Fall after joining us for some of our rides and activities. Each has contributed to our organization by planning rides, attending meetings, rides and events, helping with fundraisers, and last weekend signed up to be Co-Chairs for our Line-Up and Road Captain committees as we begin preparing for Pride.
What better time to welcome our newest Patch Holders than during our pre-ride check-in on a ride that took us South to the Pinnacles National Park Area, San Antonio Reservoir and Lake Nacimiento, an overnight stay in Paso Robles, then back up to San Francisco on the scenic Pacific Coast Highway. On behalf of the San Francisco Dykes on Bikes, we look forward to many rides with you both. We know that you will wear your patch in Pride, declaring that you are a Dyke on a Bike with as much enthusiasm as your pipes are loud.
Kate Brown, Ph.D., is the President of San Francisco Dykes on Bikes® Women’s Motorcycle Contingent.
Published on April 21, 2022
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