![who invented the gay pride flag who invented the gay pride flag](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2018/06/lgbt-pride-flag-redesign-sq.jpg)
Numerous complications over having an odd-number of colors led to turquoise being dropped, at least according to reports. In protest of the assassination of Harvey Milk, the flag was changed to be only six colors (dropping the indigo stripe), so that it could be split in half and evenly line two sides of the street while the parade In 1979, the community landed on this six-color version, which was hung from lampposts in San Francisco. When Baker first attempted to commercially produce the flag, hot pink wasn’t readily available, so the flag was reduced to seven colors. Purple, or more accurately, lavender, also becameĪ popular signifier of gay pride in the 1960s.īaker’s original, self-made flag was composed of eight stripes: hot pink (for sexuality), red (for life), orange (for healing), yellow (for sunlight), green (for nature), blue (for art), indigo (for harmony)Īnd violet (for the human spirit). Symbol was the pink triangle, but because of its horrible significance not everyone felt comfortable with its symbolism. In the second half of this century, until the rainbow flag, the most recognized gay and lesbian Carried in abundance at this past weekend’s New York City Gay Pride Parade, the rainbow flag hasīecome instantly recognizable as a symbol of diversity and acceptance.Īrtist Gilbert Baker of San Francisco was the first to appropriate the rainbow for this purpose in 1978, but bright colors have historically played a significant role in gay culture,Īccording to “ Sunshine and Rainbows: The Development of Gay and Lesbian Culture in Queensland” by Clive Moore:īright colors have always been forms of gay identification, particularly green, yellow, pink, lavender and purple. For centuries, the semiotics of the rainbow have evolved through the fields of art, scienceĪnd beyond, but have only more recently been associated with the lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgender community. 11 18 19 The design involves a labrys, a type of double-headed axe, superimposed on the downward-pointing black triangle, set against a violet background. Noah considered it a sign from God, Aristotle wrestled with its geometry and Dorothy sang about it as an escape from Kansas. The labrys lesbian flag was created in 1999 by graphic designer Sean Campbell, and published in June 2000 in the Palm Springs edition of the Gay and Lesbian Times Pride issue. Louisa Gouliamaki/Agence France-Presse - Getty Images