As Hispanic Heritage Month begins, events in cities like Chicago, North Carolina, and Massachusetts have been canceled over fears they could be targeted by ICE raids.
In San Francisco, organizers are taking a different approach. The San Francisco Lowrider Council will host the first nationally televised lowrider parade this Saturday, Sept. 20, airing live on CBS. The daylong celebration also includes a car show and the “King of the Streets” hopping competition, with a $10,000 prize on the line.
“We cannot live in fear,” said Roberto Y. Hernández, who founded the San Francisco Lowrider Council in 1981. “We are not doing anything wrong. We are not criminals.”
Lowriding in San Francisco has long been tied to resistance. When police banned cruising on Mission Street in the early 1980s, Hernández was arrested more than 100 times and beaten by officers under then-Mayor Dianne Feinstein’s administration. He later sued the city and SFPD, winning a federal civil rights case that restored the right to cruise and forced reforms at Mission Station, including officer removals, new training practices, and the creation of Raza Park and the Mission Recreation Center.
This year’s parade will bring hundreds of lowriders with pinstriped paint jobs bouncing down the streets, while the sound of oldies fills Mission Street — between Cesar Chavez and 17th Street — from 1 to 8 p.m.
Local businesses are also joining the celebration. La Corneta Taqueria will debut the “Lowrider Taco,” made with two tortillas layered with cheese, spicy carne and pineapple on top. La Reyna Bakery will serve a lowrider pan dulce as a tribute to the iconic Gypsy Rose.
Lowrider culture may be new for some, but for many Latino-Americans it’s in their blood, passed down from generation to generation.
Dominique Topete, a 31-year-old mother of two and member of the all-women Dueñas Car Club in San Jose, remembers driving in her mom’s lowrider when she was growing up, driving her own passion for lowriding.
“It’s more than just cruising,” Topete said. “You’re in a car and you’re just driving around, but it’s the laughter, the singing of the songs.”
One of her favorite parts now is seeing her kids’ interest in cars, and listening to their questions about hydraulics, painted pinstripes and chrome on lowriders.
“It’s so full circle for me,” Topete said. “It’s something that I grew up with, and I know that I’m passing it down to my kids. The fact that they love it as well just brings warmness to my heart.”
Event Schedule: Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025
- Lowrider Parade: 1-3 p.m., Mission Street (Cesar Chavez–17th St.), broadcast live on CBS
- “King of the Streets” Hopping Competition: 3-5 p.m., 24th & Mission Street, broadcast live on CBS
- Lowrider Car Show: 2-8 p.m., Mission Street (Cesar Chavez–18th St.), featuring more than 300 cars
For more information, visit sanfranciscolowridercouncil.com.