"The rainbow flag has multiple colors to represent diverse sexual orientations and gender identities. He told Newsweek: "There are flags that represent a variety of different communities, such as trans communities and bisexual people. Hart, of the HIV Prevention Lab and Professor and Director at Toronto Metropolitan University's of Psychology Department of Psychology, believes the famous flags play an important role. LGBTQ + Flag for the rights of pride and sexuality ORGE CORCUERA/Getty Images The LGBTQ Flags and What They Representĭr. Transgender broadly denotes anyone who does not identify with his or her assigned gender, and as an identity, the term refers those who transgress either the traditional sex and gender characteristics or expectations. When you think about symbols of the LGBTQ community, the rainbow-colored pride flag probably comes to mind right away Cristina Moliner/Getty Images What Does LGBTQ Stand For?Īcronym LGBT stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender, while increasingly, a Q is included for Queer and/or Questioning.Īn "A" for Asexual, an "I" for Intersex and/or a "2" for Two-Spirit is also sometimes included in the acronym.Ī lesbian is defined as a woman who is mainly romantically, emotionally and physically attracted to other women.Ī gay person is usually denoted as a man who is exclusively attracted to other men, although this term is occasionally used to refer to lesbians.īisexuality refers to a person who is drawn to members of both people born male and female. This version, Del Rio adds, is likely the most modern take on the lesbian flag.Picture of a young woman waving LGBTQ flag under the sky. The top red stripe represents "gender non-conformity," while the orange stripe below that is for "independence." Next, the light orange stripe honors "community," followed by white symbolizing "unique relationships to womanhood," pink for "serenity and peace," mauve for "love and sex," and lastly, magenta for "femininity." "The creator, , gave each stripe a specific meaning," says Del Rio. Using the lipstick lesbian flag as a starting point, the updated version includes shades of orange. In an effort to be more inclusive, the pink and purple flag got a redesign in 2018. "There is enough concern about the position of the creator to knock out of contention to be the lesbian flag-with or without the lips on it." Were there changes made to that flag? "I've seen references to problematic and concerning statements that the creator had made," she says, referring to reports of biphobic and racist comments the creator posted online and has since deleted. This flag first appeared on a blog, prompting additional concerns about the creator's political views, notes Del Rio. What is the most common lesbian pride flag?Ī Guide To 12 Common Gender Identity Terms The lesbian community is no exception-in fact, there have been multiple iterations of lesbian pride flags created. Thanks to the age of the internet, says Del Rio, flags celebrating specific communities of queer people have come into popularity throughout the aughts, including those honoring transgender, asexual, bisexual, genderqueer, and pansexual people. Still, that doesn't mean LGBTQ pride flags start and end at the many variations of the rainbow one. "There was a need to create flags to indicate that the queer community reflects everybody who claims a queer identity," Del Rio adds. Recently, more inclusive iterations of the iconic flag have come into popularity, including those with additional stripes to represent the transgender community and people of color.
"There is a history within the queer community of not fully recognizing the needs of people with different identities," explains Chelsea Del Rio, co-chair on the Committee on LGBT History and associate professor of history at LaGuardia Community College. Though the rainbow flag aimed to celebrate the queer community as a whole, not everyone was represented. The Rainbow Flag is like other flags in that sense, it belongs to the people." "A flag is something that everyone owns and that’s why they work. "A true flag is torn from the soul of the people," Baker told CBS Chicago in 2012. It represents the LGBTQ community all year long, but it’s especially visible in June during Pride month when the rainbow is flag flown outside shop windows, adorns shirts, gets incorporated into brand labels and even food packaging.Ī prominent emblem, its prevalence has made it instantly recognizable. By now, you're likely familiar with the six-color rainbow pride flag, created by Gilbert Baker.