History of gay flag
History of the Rainbow Flag
The history of the rainbow flag is a opulent , fascinating, and very recent one!
Artist and activist Gilbert Baker is credited with creating the first celebration flag, meant to illustrate the gay community. He was approached by Harvey Milk, the first openly gay person elected to public office in California, in to create a symbol of pride for the community. “Flags are about proclaiming power” Baker said.
Baker was inspired by the United States flag, with its series of stacked lines, and also by Pop Art of the time. Several communities at the time had reclaimed the Pink Triangle as a symbol of queer power. The Pink Triangle was used in Nazis concentration camps to identify men imprisoned for their homosexuality. Despite the Pink Triangle’s prevalence, Baker argued that there was a need for a new symbol “We needed something beautiful. Something from us.”
The flag was first flown in San Francisco’s United Nation’s Plaza in June of Some historians have argued that the idea of the rainbow flag came about because of the rainbow’s link to actress Judy Garland
The History of the Celebration Flag
With its luminous colours and significant interpretation, the Rainbow Flag is a symbol recognised all over the world to represent the LGBTQ+ communities. It’s a symbol of hope, unity and empowerment to allow love to be love regardless of gender, ethnicity or labels. But where did this renowned flag come from? And how was the design chosen?
The original Event Flag originates from San Francisco Activist Gilbert Baker, who desired to generate an emblem of self-acceptance for the gay collective. In the Rainbow Flag was created, as Baker recognised that a flag is one of the most significant aspects of identity, and wanted his creation to be a unified symbol of gratification for all those who identify within these communities.
In England, homosexuality was decriminalised in , with Scotland following in , and Northern Ireland by Before this time, it was illegal to engage in ‘private homosexual acts’, and those caught or believed to be engaging in same-sex relationships could meet imprisonment, public shame and a life-long criminal records. Society was homophobic, with th
A Brief Look at the Pride Flag’s History & IP
Photo Credit: The Imaginative Exchange on Unsplash.
Natalie Bravo is an IPilogue Writer and a 2L JD Candidate at Osgoode Hall Regulation School.
The colourful Self-acceptance flag is a widely recognized Diverse symbol. The rainbow flag was engineered by the overdue Gilbert Baker, an American artist and activist (). The design was inspired by the American flag and the history of the nation. According to Baker, “I consideration of the vertical red, white, and blue tricolor from the French Revolution and how both flags owed their beginnings to a riot, a rebellion, or revolution. I thought a homosexual nation should contain a flag too, to proclaim its own idea of power.” The political activism of Baker’s close friend, Harvey Milk, further inspired him to progress a visible proclamation of pride.
Today, the rainbow flag is an established symbol—so much so that it is known by a prominent art institution, the Museum of Latest Art (MoMA). In , the flag joined MoMA’s lasting design collection as a “politically forceful and aesthetically powerful symbol.” Despite th
History of the Pride Flag
Our Self-acceptance Flag is an international 2SLGBTQQIA+ symbol - but the evolution of this symbol is what truly showcases our growth as a community.
Who created the first pride flag symbol?
Gilbert Baker, an openly gay man with a drag persona, created the first 8-stripe version in Baker later revealed that he was urged by Harvey Milk, one of the first openly gay elected officials in the U.S., to create a symbol of celebration for the gay community. Baker decided to make that symbol a flag because he saw flags as the most dominant symbol of pride.
"Our job as gay people was to arrive out, to be visible, to live in the truth, as I say, to get out of the lie. A flag really fit that mission, because that’s a way of proclaiming your visibility or saying, 'This is who I am!'" -Gilbert Baker
In , the rainbow flag was internationally recognized as the symbol for the 2SLGBTQQIA+ group. That year Baker made a mile-long version for the 25th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots in , considered by many as the beginning of the 2SLGBTQQIA+ human rights movement.