Hodges decision, the White House was illuminated in the six Pride colors to celebrate the federal legalization of gay marriage in all states. Blue (A combination of Turquoise and Indigo).The six colors we are used to seeing are: This removal happened just a year after the flag's original creation, so most people are only familiar with the six-color version. When the hot pink fabric became too expensive to use in normal flag manufacturing, and the parades wanted to have a flag with an even number of colors, the LGBTQ+ community ultimately removed the hot pink and turquoise stripes. There was a pink stripe at the top in his design, above the red one, and a turquoise stripe in between green and indigo. The first Pride flag proudly flew in the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day Parade in 1978 and was available for everyone to use.īaker's initial design had eight colors, although nowadays, most Pride flags only have six.
He saw it as a symbol for all queer people and wanted it to be a rallying point. One of Gilbert Baker's most influential decisions was not trademarking his flag. That tool of oppression was hardly a symbol that the LGBTQ+ wanted to continue using, so they were eager to find something they could call their own.Īfter Milk's assassination, queer people across America increased the demand for Pride flags to honor his legacy and celebrate their identity. The Nazis had made that symbol during the Second World War to label men as homosexual. Milk wanted a new symbol since the only symbol at the time was a pink triangle. It was intended to portray the diversity of the LGBTQ+ community and all the colorful people inhabiting it.īaker had met the influential gay activist Harvey Milk who, knowing Baker's sewing and creating background, asked him to come up with a universal symbol for the gay community. The use of the rainbow flag as an LGBTQ+ symbol started in San Francisco. Long before Gilbert Baker designed the first LGBTQ+ flag in 1978, the rainbow was a symbol for peace. So, why does the Pride flag don a bright and beautiful rainbow? There is so much history here, so let’s dive right into it! While those struggles may differ based on race, gender, sex, country of origin, and other factors, the Pride flag is something that has the power to bring us together, allow us to be proud of our uniqueness. It shows that we are all struggling with oppression in a world where many of us don’t understand each other. The Pride flag is a symbol of unity, even when there is in-fighting and gatekeeping in the community. For the LGBTQ+ community, the Pride flag does much the same. A country's flag comes to represent the ideals of the people living there and what they hope to achieve. Countries have flags to salute and to unite their citizens under a single banner. Since June is officially Pride month, it's time to fly your own flag high, but before you do, find out what the colors of the rainbow flag mean below.Flags have always been used to symbolize groups of people with something important in common. As the popularity of the flag grew, its design was adapted to meet demand, and by 1979, the six-color version became the official symbol for gay pride. Instead, it became a universal symbol for LGBT pride and began hanging from windows, flying high at demonstrations, and cropping up all over the country. Originally hand-stitched and hand-dyed with eight colors - pink, red, orange, yellow, green, turquoise, blue, and purple - the rainbow flag became much more than a simple reaction to homophobic behavior. In 1978, though, a gay artist and civil rights activist Gilbert Baker, alongside the Grove Street gay community in San Francisco, made the first rainbow pride flag as a response to an anti-gay community that began using the pink triangle the Nazis used to identify gay individuals. You know the Pride flag well, but what is the meaning of the rainbow flag? Its history is as interesting as it is colorful.įrom peace movements to political parties, the rainbow flag has been the symbol of dozens of historical and cultural organizations. You've seen it on buildings, bumper stickers, and front lawns, and you've waved one at parades, rallies, and protests.