San Fran sees in Year of the Rat

  • 2020-01-30
Each year, the Chinese New Year is celebrated on a different day, and San Francisco is getting ready to acknowledge the day with a parade.

This year, more than 100 units are expected to take part in the parade, which is likely to draw viewers in the hundreds of thousands, watching either in person or on television. Welcoming the Chinese Year of the Rat, the parade will include elaborate traditional costumes, beautiful floats, and Miss Chinatown U.S.A., along with the members of her court. Also participating is the 288-foot Golden Dragon, a favorite of the crowd. Known as Gum Lung, the dragon is carried by a team of more than 180 men and women from White Crane, a martial arts group.

The Southwest Airlines Chinese New Year Parade was named by the International Festivals & Events Association as one of the world's top 10 parades. It is also an illuminated night parade, and one of the few parades of this type still held in North America.

The first parades were held in the 1860s by the Chinese who had come to San Francisco, many to work on the railroad. They wanted to share their culture with residents of their new homeland. The parade has grown from that beginning into the largest parade to celebrate the Chinese New Year outside Asia.

The parade is scheduled for February 8, beginning at 5:15 pm, starting from Market and Second Streets. Banner printing can be used to create flags to mark the route at events like this.