The rainbow Pride flag was originally created with eight different colours, and was later simplifed by removing the pink and turquoise The rainbow Pride flag was originally created with eight different colours, and was later simplifed by removing the pink and turquoise
Still, the remaining spectrum of colour came to reflect the immense diversity and the unity of the LGBTQ community.Ĭurious to know about initiatives supporting LGBTQ+ creatives? Head to these 4 LGBTQ+ organizations that you should know, follow, and might as well join. Pink and turquoise were removed because the hot-pink dye was hard to source and because seven stripes were harder to mass-produce.
The flag would later be simplified to become the six-tripe version, which is mostly used today. Something from us” he argued.Īnd so, the rainbow Pride flag was created with eight different colours, each with its own meaning assigned to it by Baker: The Pride Flag was designed by the artist and queer activist Gilbert Baker in 1978 – ©Ale_Mi/Depositphotos – Cover image – ©marcbruxelle/Depositphotosīefore that, the most popular emblem of queerness was the pink triangle, a reclaimed symbol from Nazi Germany’s persecution of gay men.ĭespite the Pink Triangle’s prevalence, Baker had a problem with its tainted history. The inspiration behind the design came from the United States national flag, which had celebrated its bicentennial in 1976, the Pop Art movement, which defined the decades leading up to the seventies with an optimistic investment in new and contemporary ideas, and of course, an actual rainbow. On that day, Baker along with thirty volunteers hand-dyed and stitched two giant flags and hoisted them above the city’s UN Plaza, near city hall. It had eight colours and was designed by the artist and queer activist Gilbert Baker who was commissioned to design something that could represent the LGBTQ community by his friend Harvey Milk, the first openly gay elected official in California.
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And it took off.June has long been recognised as Pride Month and on this colourful occasion, the rainbow Pride Flag takes centre stage.Įxpect to see it everywhere: stretched across balconies, decorating shop windows and draped over the shoulders of those displaying solidarity with the LGBTQ community.Ī queer icon and a ubiquitous symbol around the world, the Pride Flag first flew in 1978 during San Francisco Pride. And I made a couple flags actually, but this one I submitted to a blog on Tumblr about genderfluidity and gender fluid people. "I wouldn’t call myself an artist, but I’ve dabbled with drawing and bits of Photoshop, so I decided to create it myself. I found genderfluid to be fitting but was disappointed with the lack of symbolic representation," Poole said. At the time I knew genderqueer fit me, but it still felt too broad. "I had been trying to find an identity that fit me. In an interview with Majestic Mess Designs, Poole said they created the flag because genderfluidity lacked a symbol and the term "genderqueer" didn't exactly fit. Purple: Represents both masculinity and feminity The flag was created by JJ Poole in 2012 according to OutRight Action International. How often someone's identity shifts depends on the individual. People who are genderfluid don't identify with one gender, but rather their gender identity shifts between male, female, or somewhere else on the spectrum.