The Progression of Pride: The Origins of the Pride Flag
We’ve likely all seen a rainbow flag somewhere in our lives. These flags, spotted in coffee shops or displayed prominently in store windows, are symbols of pride and a staple of allyship for the LGBTQ+ community. Despite their widespread visibility, the history of these flags are far less well-known. However, the original concept of the pride flag can be traced back to two men: Harvey Milk and Gilbert Baker.
In 1977, Harvey Milk was elected one of the first openly gay elected officials in the United States. Milk's open declaration of his identity brought hope to LGBTQ+ people worldwide amidst widespread hostility and discrimination. Because of his ability to defy the odds and still take the win, his role on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors won him fame internationally.
In preparation for 1978’s Gay Freedom Day celebration, later becoming San Francisco Pride, Harvey Milk challenged his friend Gilbert Baker to create a positive symbol for the LGBTQ+ community. Inspired by the challenge, he began to create a flag.
Baker was well known for his sewing skills and flamboyant drag creations and showed his creativity in his work. Dying the fabrics by hand, he stitched together a flag with eight stripes, each with unique symbolism. Hot Pink symbolized sexuality, red for life, orange for healing, yellow for the sun, green for nature, turquoise for art, indigo for harmony, and violet for spirit.
However, this flag was far from the last iteration. Harvey Milk was tragically assassinated on November 27, 1978. Following his death, the demand for a symbol of hope increased in the mourning community. Due to the inaccessibility of the fabric, the hot pink stripe was dropped when mass production began. In 1979, the flag was modified again for the San Francisco Pride Parade. Organizers wanted to split the flag in two so that it could cover both sides of the parade route. To do this, an even number of colors was needed and the turquoise and indigo stripes were merged into a royal blue stripe. This flag was even easier to mass produce and it became the traditional pride flag many know today.
The flag remained unchanged from the six-stripe design until controversy struck Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 2017, 11 gay bars faced investigations into complaints of racist discrimination. Although POC had a huge role in the progress of the modern LGBTQ rights movement, they face worse conditions than their white counterparts. Due to troubling statistics, The Philadelphia Office of LGBT Affairs commissioned a new flag as part of its More Color, More Pride campaign, to better represent the inclusion of Queer people of color. This flag was raised in City Hall during 2017’s pride celebration, making the message of Queer inclusion and intersectionality clear.
The flag was further adapted by Daniel Quasar, a nonbinary designer who uses xe/they pronouns. Inspired by the events in Philadelphia, xe decided to make a flag to highlight the most marginalized identities with a focus on transgender individuals and POC. Much like the original flag, this flag utilized symbolism with an intentional arrow design. The arrow, residing on the left side of the flag, points rightwards toward the future. After this, the flag reached its final adaptation, when it was updated again in 2021 by an Intersex Equality Rights UK advocacy group to involve the intersex flag, another marginalized identity.
Much like the Queer community, the flags that symbolize us are adapting all the time. Now, specific identity flags have popped up for almost any sexuality you can imagine. These symbols give us our voice and let each other know that we are not alone. Next time you see a pride flag out in the wild, I urge you to take a second to appreciate the history and symbolism behind the fabric you see today. As the original flag creator Gilbert Baker said, “The flag is an action – it’s more than just the cloth and the stripes. When a person puts the Rainbow Flag on [their] car or [their] house, they’re not just flying a flag. They’re taking action.”
Don’t hesitate to take action.
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