More than four decades ago, in a time when it was still dangerous to be openly gay even in the San Francisco Bay area, Jose Sarria made a bold statement at a 1965 Queen of San Francisco Pageant. “There are too many queens in this city already,” he reportedly said. “I proclaim myself Empress of San Francisco.”

That was a bold statement, indeed. Yet Sarria backed up his proclamation with 40 years of community service and activism for the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and even heterosexual communities by laying the foundation for the Imperial Court system.

About 30 people from the Imperial Court de San Diego joined more than 67 chapters in Palm Springs this last weekend to celebrate the organization’s 40th anniversary. It was a gala weekend attended by hundreds of reigning emperors and empresses from across North America.

“This past weekend was the 40th anniversary of the founding of the International Court System of Canada, United States and Mexico, the second largest GLBT organization in the world [the first being the Metropolitan Community Church],” said Nicole Murray-Ramirez, a member of the local chapter and the court’s international president. “This is a celebration of the founding of the court system, and a celebration honoring Jose.”

In addition to founding the Imperial Court, Sarria, now 82 years old, is credited for being the first openly gay candidate to run for elected office in the United States. Though he lost his bid for San Francisco city/county supervisor – a seat later won by Harvey Milk – Sarria’s political actions around town helped repeal a San Francisco ordinance that made it illegal for a bartender to serve drinks to homosexuals.

Last weekend, the Imperial Court awarded four Jose Sarria Lifetime Achievement Awards. Those honored were: Rev. Dr. Brent Hawkes, a longtime Canadian civil rights activist; Emilio Velasquez, a Mexican civil rights and AIDS activist; Cleve Jones, founder of the AIDS Memorial Quilt; and Robin Tyler, producer and director of the March on Washington.

“They were people outside the court system who we thought had made a contribution to the gay movement and communities at large,” Murray-Ramirez said. “They were all there and gave inspiring speeches.”

Murray-Ramirez also gave two additional presentations during the anniversary celebration. One was to present the Presidential Award to the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force. The second was a surprise to everyone – even to Sarria. For the past year, Murray-Ramirez has been working with San Francisco City Supervisor Bevan Dufty, who attended last weekend’s event as the keynote speaker, to get a San Francisco street named after Sarria. Their work was announced and they unveiled a sign for “Jose Sarria Place.”

“The most thrilling thing [is that] the street will be where the Harvey Milk Library is,” Murray-Ramirez said.

If approved, the name would affect one block of San Francisco’s 16th Street, between Pond and Prosper. The only business address affected by the change would be the library.

But Sarria’s legacy, Murray-Ramirez added, will not be preserved by of a street name so much as it will by the Imperial Courts he founded four decades ago.

The Imperial Court is a nonprofit community service organization that works to further relationships with businesses and organizations within their respective local communities. They organize functions and fund-raisers to benefit communities and help those who are in need of assistance.

The traditional Imperial theme started as “camp” fun with Sarria’s proclamation, but is now an established order within the court system. Murray-Ramirez said the court is just like a Rotary Club for the GLBT community. “But instead of wearing fezzes, we wear crowns and tiaras,” he said.

San Diego’s chapter is one of the first to expand Sarria’s vision. The Imperial Court de San Diego will be celebrating 35 years in 2006. The Imperial Court de San Diego’s charities include: the Benjamin F. Dillingham III Community Grant, which provides money to community members and organizations in need; the Tijuana AIDS Fund/Blanket Drive, which provides assistance to HIV/AIDS service agencies in Tijuana and blankets to the poor and elderly; the Toni Atkins Lesbian Health Fund, which provides financial assistance to lesbian, bisexual and transgender women in need of mammograms, cancer checks and other medical care; the GLBT Community Easter Egg Hunt, an annual event where businesses donate toys and gift baskets, and an Easter egg hunt is held for GLBT and GLBT-friendly families; Toys for Kids, the Imperial Court’s annual holiday toy drive; the Queen Eddie Conlon Youth Fund, established to provide assistance to San Diego youth ages 13 to 18 for education-related expenses, books, supplies and clothing, and the Nicole Murray-Ramirez Student Scholarship Fund.

In its 35-year history, Murray-Ramirez estimates the San Diego chapter has raised $20 million.

“What San Diego does – with toy drives, Easter egg hunts, scholarships, AIDS charities – is mirrored in every court in all of these cities,” he said. “When you think of it, countless millions of dollars have been raised by the court system.”

And the organization continues to grow. A chapter is forming in Vermont and the San Diego monarchs are sponsoring a new court in Arizona.