One of the leading symbols of the LGBT community, which includes lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, is the flag, which depicts all the colors of the rainbow except blue. The history of this flag is associated with the name of Gilbert Baker.
The rainbow flag is a key symbol of the LGBT community and the movement for their rights. It depicts six horizontal stripes that repeat in order the colors of the rainbow without blue: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple. The use of this attribute is widespread in different countries, primarily in situations that are directly related to the LGBT community: at parades, rallies, public events, as well as on the facades of "Gay-friendly" organizations that emphasize their tolerant attitude towards lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.
History of the appearance of the flag
The creator of this LGBT symbol is Gilbert Baker, an American artist and public figure. The reason for the creation of the international flag of this community was a gay pride parade in San Francisco on June 25, 1978. It was this year that became a landmark for the development of the LGBT movement, since for the first time in California a person who came out, that is, openly admitted himself gay, was elected to a political post - Harvey Milk.
The idea of placing rainbow symbols on the flag is attributed to three different circumstances. The first is Baker's borrowing of the "race flag" of the African American civil rights movement. The second is borrowing an idea from a hippie under the influence of the pioneer of the gay movement Allen Ginsberg, who belonged to this subculture. The third is the death of actress and singer Judy Garland, who performed the song "Over the Rainbow" in the film "The Wizard of Oz". This song was recognized by the LGBT community as an anthem, therefore, according to one version, it was she who became the basis of the idea of the rainbow flag.
Together with LGBT activists, Baker sewed two canvases from muslin (a very thin fabric of plain weave) and painted them by hand. However, initially the flag had other colors in greater numbers: deep pink, red, orange, yellow, green, turquoise, indigo, purple. Its transformation into the current generally accepted version took place in 2 stages. The first change was the abandonment of the image on the flag of pink, symbolizing sexuality, since the production of canvases was difficult due to the complexity of obtaining such a color and its high cost. The next transformation is associated with the next gay pride parade in the United States in 1979. They decided to hang the flag vertically on two pillars, but due to the odd number of colors, the turquoise color, personifying magic and art, was completely hidden behind the pillars and was not visible, so it was decided to make six stripes on the flag.
What do the colors of the LGBT flag mean?
The idea of the LGBT rainbow symbol is liberation, motivation to say "no" to conventions, going beyond and openly recognizing oneself as who people think they are. The modern version of the flag has the following meaning: red - life, orange - health, yellow - sunlight, green - nature, blue - calmness and harmony, purple - the strength of human spirit. Baker said that the rainbow on this attribute perfectly illustrates the diversity of people in the world. Towards the end of his life, which ended in 2017, he offered to return the pink and turquoise color to the flag.
