The VTA Pride Bus is now rolling through Santa Clara County, celebrating LGBTQ+ leaders whose courage and vision shaped history. Wrapped in vibrant, pop-art-inspired artwork, the design reflects the “Unstoppable” theme of 2025’s Silicon Valley Pride: 50 years of love, legacy, and liberation. The style, with its bold colors and graphic flair, echoes the energy of 1970s pop art and embodies the spirit of visibility, resilience, and joyful defiance celebrated in queer culture.
Among the eight featured icons are Bay Area trailblazers Angela Davis, Harvey Milk, and longtime VTA Board Member Ken Yeager.
Ken Yeager’s portrait carries special meaning for the South Bay. As the first openly gay elected official in Santa Clara County, Ken served on the VTA Board for many years, founded Queer Silicon Valley, and inspired countless people to live openly and lead with integrity and purpose.
Also highlighted on the bus is Billy DeFrank (William Prince), whose legacy overflows beyond the art. As an African American performer whose drag shows financially supported many LGBTQ+ organizations, Billy’s contributions have been memorialized with a safe, vibrant community hub: the Billy DeFrank LGBTQ+ Community Center in San José, right within VTA’s service area.
Other featured icons include:
- Marsha P. Johnson, a Stonewall leader and advocate for LGBTQ+ youth, HIV/AIDS awareness, and transgender rights
- Keith Haring, pop artist and activist whose work carried radical messages of inclusion
- Harvey Milk, the first openly gay elected official in the U.S. and a tireless voice for equality until his assassination in 1978
- José Sarria, a local veteran, performer, and pioneering advocate for LGBTQ+ rights
- Audre Lorde, poet, feminist, and civil rights activist who championed intersectional justice
- Angela Davis, philosopher, professor, and activist for racial equality, women’s rights, LGBTQ+ rights, and prison reform
Watch for VTA’s 2025 Pride Bus in the Silicon Valley Pride Parade, Sunday, August 31 at 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. accompanied by proud VTA employees and their families, friends and loved ones.
