LGBTQ Activist and Motorcycle Icon Soni Wolf Passes Away at 69
Every year, San Francisco’s starts with motorcycle club ‘Dykes on Bikes’ riding down Market Street. It has reportedly been a tradition that dates back to the late 1970s, and for the past 40 years Soni Wolf had been the one at the forefront, leading the pack.
(Photo by Jack Ottaway)
This year, however, it will not be the same anymore.
At the age of 69, Soni Wolf - legendary LGBT activist, historically significant lawyer, proud veteran of the United States Air Force and passionate motorcyclist has passed away peacefully on 25th April, from natural causes.
In her lifetime, Soni had been riding with her fellow bikers at the frontline of the Pride parade since the late 1970s - when the movement for women’s empowerment and visibility brought Dykes on Bikes to the parade’s front.
(Photo taken via Shutterstock)
Soni also spearheaded the group’s mission to create a national and international community of women’s motorcyclists supporting philanthropic endeavors in the LGBTQ communities for the next 40 years.
In fact, she played an instrumental role in shaping Dykes on Bikes to be what it is today. Her regular day job was that of a lawyer at 50 Balmy Law, and with her prowess she ended up taking the trademark Dykes on Bikes all the way up to the Supreme Court (twice!), where she fought for the term, which signifies pride in the community and is protected as political speech.
All this work was done pro bono and together with Brooke Oliver. “Dykes around the world found their voices as Soni and her sisters rumbled down Market Street at the head of Pride for 40 years. Chapters around the world spread that tradition. We have lost a sister, a mentor, an inspiration who started an epic cultural shift. Her legacy lives on at the front of Pride Parades everywhere. Soni will always be riding at your side,” Oliver stated.
Kate Brown, past President and current Spokesperson for the motorcycle club also said: “Soni leaves an indelible mark on history and especially on those who shared her daily life. Soni steadfastly refused to accept “Dyke” as an epithet. She blazed the trail for the rest of us in courage and LGBTQ pride. She taught me leadership takes many forms; there is strength in patience, power in listening, and small acts have a way of being defining moments in history. Like the roads we ride, our lives take many twists and turns. I am forever grateful for the route that brought Soni into my life.”
(Photo by Jane Philomen Cleland)
In fact, for all her contributions, Soni was selected by the Board of Directors of the 2018 San Francisco Pride Celebration Committee as a Community Grand Marshal for the event. Soni was deeply touched and honored, but due to her untimely passing will be unable to see it though for herself.
Instead, her close friends will represent her at the parade by carrying her iconic painted gas tank from the motorcycle she rode in the first Dykes on Bikes contingent in San Francisco.
“Soni’s legacy looms large at San Francisco Pride. Our theme for 2018 is Generations of Strength, and it is with immense gratitude that we recognize and celebrate Soni’s life and contributions,” Executive Director of San Francisco Pride, George Ridgely, said. “The Dykes on Bikes contingent is an integral and essential component of our Parade. I speak both personally and on behalf of the entire organization when I say that Soni is greatly loved and will be missed.”
While Soni might have left us, she still has a legion of activists and like-minded bikers to continue her legacy. A Soni Wolf Memorial fund has also been set up, where documents and materials with historical significance to the Dykes on Bikes and larger LGBT community will be documented and archived.
