Colors in gay flag
Flags of the LGBTIQ Community
Flags have always been an integral part of the LGBTIQ+ movement. They are a seeable representation meant to honor progress, advocate for visibility, and amplify the claim and drive for collective action. There have been many LGBTIQ+ flags over the years. Some hold evolved, while others are constantly being conceptualized and created.
Rainbow Flag
Created in by Gilbert Baker, the iconic Pride Rainbow flag originally had eight stripes. The colors included pink to represent sexuality, red for healing, yellow for light, green for serenity with nature, turquoise for art, indigo for harmony, and violet for spirit. In the years since, the flag now has six colors. It no longer has a pink stripe, and the turquoise and indigo stripes were replaced with royal blue.
Progress Event Flag
Created in by nonbinary artist Daniel Quasar, the Progress Pride flag is based on the iconic rainbow flag. With stripes of black and brown to represent marginalized LGBTIQ+ people of tint and the triad of blue, pink, and ivory from the trans flag, the design represents diversity and inclusion.
Trans Flag
Conceived by Monica Helms, an openly transge
You might be familiar with the six-colored rainbow flag that is widely used to represent the Homosexual community. But did you know that this is a relatively new rendition of the original?
The unique flag (shown here) was designed by activist, veteran, drag queen, and creator, Gilbert Baker, and made its debut at the San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Freedom Day Procession in He was inspired by the Rolling Stones song She’s a Rainbow, and the s hippies movement, assigning each tint with a specific meaning:
Pink: Sex (later removed)
Red: Life
Orange: Healing
Yellow: Sunlight
Green: Nature
Turquoise: Magic (later removed)
Indigo: Serenity
Violet: Spirit
The evolution to the six-colored flag used today happened out of practicality.
After the parade in , ask for for the Pride Flag increased, but the warm pink fabric was hard to find in big quantities. Then, the Paramount Flag Company started making a version out of the standard rainbow colors to help meet request, and a seven-color lgbtq+ fest flag was the fresh norm.
A year later, the flag evolved once more…
Here’s What the Different LGBTQIA+ Flags Represent
LGBTQIA+
When we reflect of Pride Month, the first image that typically comes to mind is the classic rainbow flag. However, many people don’t realize that along with the Rainbow Pride Flag, there are an array of different identifiers that represent the diverse lgbtq+ community. While many in the LGBTQIA+ community name with the all-encompassing rainbow flag, each group has its own flag to represent its unique contributions and stories within the community. Here’s a rundown of the different flags and what they represent.
The Gilbert Baker Pride Flag
The original rainbow pride flag was designed by Gilbert Baker in at the request of Harvey Milk, the first openly lgbtq+ elected official in California. Gilbert chose the rainbow as it represents a symbol of hope.
Original flag colors and meaning:
Pink: sex; Red: life; Orange: healing; Yellow: sunlight; Green: nature; Turquoise: magic; Blue: harmony; Violet: spirit.
Rainbow Pride Flag
This is the iteration of the Pride Flag that we all know today, used to symbolize the overall LGBTQIA+ community. In this version, the pink and turquoise were excluded
The Progress Pride flag was developed in by agender American artist and creator Daniel Quasar (who uses xe/xyr pronouns). Based on the iconic rainbow flag from , the redesign celebrates the diversity of the LGBTQ community and calls for a more inclusive society. In , the V&A acquired a bespoke applique version of the Progress Pride flag that can be seen on display in the Design – Now gallery.
'Progress' is a reinterpretation of multiple iterations of the pride flag. The imaginative 'rainbow flag' was created by Gilbert Baker in to celebrate members of the gay and homosexual woman political movement. It comprised eight coloured stripes stacked on top of each other to evoke a rainbow, a symbol of hope. Baker assigned a specific meaning to each colour: pink for sex, red for life, orange for healing, yellow for sunlight, green for innateness, turquoise for magic, indigo for serenity and violet for spirit. A year later the pink and turquoise stripes were dropped owing to a shortage of pink fabric at the time and legibility concerns, resulting in the six-colour rainbow flag most commonly used in the first decades of the 21st century.
Baker's flag was embraced internationally a
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