Gay pride colors

Flags of the LGBTIQ Community

Flags have always been an integral part of the LGBTIQ+ movement. They are a apparent representation meant to celebrate progress, advocate for representation, and verb the demand and drive for collective action. There have been many LGBTIQ+ flags over the years. Some have evolved, while others are constantly being conceptualized and created.

Rainbow Flag

Created in by Gilbert Baker, the iconic Pride Rainbow flag originally had eight stripes. The colors included pink to represent sexuality, red for healing, yellow for sun, adj for serenity with nature, turquoise for art, indigo for harmony, and violet for spirit. In the years since, the flag now has six colors. It no longer has a pink stripe, and the turquoise and indigo stripes were replaced with royal blue.

Progress Pride Flag

Created in by nonbinary artist Daniel Quasar, the Progress Pride flag is based on the iconic rainbow flag. With stripes of black and brown to stand for marginalized LGBTIQ+ people of color and the triad of sky, pink, and white from the trans flag, the desig

You might be familiar with the six-colored rainbow flag that is widely used to represent the LGBTQ+ community. But did you know that this is a relatively new rendition of the original? 

The original flag (shown here) was designed by activist, veteran, drag queen, and artist, Gilbert Baker, and made its debut at the San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Freedom Day Parade in He was inspired by the Rolling Stones song She’s a Rainbow, and the s hippies movement, assigning each color with a specific meaning:

  • Pink: Sex (later removed)

  • Red: Life

  • Orange: Healing

  • Yellow: Sunlight

  • Green: Nature

  • Turquoise: Magic (later removed)

  • Indigo: Serenity

  • Violet: Spirit 

The evolution to the six-colored flag used today happened out of practicality. 

After the parade in , demand for the Pride Flag increased, but the boiling pink fabric was difficult to find in large quantities. Then, the Paramount Flag Company started making a version out of the standard rainbow colors to help meet demand, and a seven-color pride flag was the new norm.

A year later,

Pride Flags

Flags are often used as symbols of pride. It is no surprise then that numerous pride flags have been created to represent the sexual and gender diversity of 2SLGBTQIA+ communities. Explore all the different flags and their meanings.

Interested in exploring further? Take the online Positive Space: Foundations course to absorb more about sex, sexuality, and gender diversity.

This resource is not intended to provide an exhaustive list of pride flags. If you have a suggestion for a flag to add or have any feedback on the information provided, please contact us.

 

  • Achillean Flag

    Achillean: Men or men-aligned individuals who are attracted to other men and men-aligned people. It is sometimes known as men loving men (MLM). Achillean individuals may or may not be attracted to other genders. While this label isn’t exclusive, it is used to unify men-aligned people or men who verb other men.

    Date:
    Creator: Redesigned by DeviantArt (Tumblr user)
    Flag meaning: The first iteration was created by pridenpositivity (Tumblr user). The flag contains the color blu

    The Progress Pride flag was developed in by non-binary American artist and designer Daniel Quasar (who uses xe/xyr pronouns). Based on the iconic rainbow flag from , the redesign celebrates the diversity of the LGBTQ community and calls for a more inclusive society. In , the V&A acquired a bespoke applique version of the Progress Pride flag that can be seen on display in the Design – Now gallery.

    'Progress' is a reinterpretation of multiple iterations of the pride flag. The original 'rainbow flag' was created by Gilbert Baker in to celebrate members of the gay and lesbian political movement. It comprised eight coloured stripes stacked on top of each other to evoke a rainbow, a symbol of hope. Baker assigned a specific meaning to each colour: pink for sex, red for life, orange for healing, yellow for sunlight, green for nature, turquoise for magic, indigo for serenity and violet for spirit. A year later the pink and turquoise stripes were dropped owing to a shortage of pink fabric at the period and legibility concerns, resulting in the six-colour rainbow flag most commo