What do the stripes on the lgbtq flag mean

Agender Pride Flag

The Agender Pride Flag was designed in 2014 by Salem X. The black and white stripes illustrate an absence of gender, the gray stripes represent semi-genderless, and the green stripe represents nonbinary genders.


Aromantic Pride Flag

The Aromantic Pride flag was created by a Tumblr user acknowledged as "cameronwhimsy" in 2014. The green stripes represent the spectrum of aromantic individuals because the dye green is on the opposite side of the hue wheel from red (which is typically associated with romance). white represents platonic relationships and gray and black represents those of other sexualities.


Asexual Pride Flag

The asexual pride flag was created by a member of the Asexual Visibility and Education Network in August of 2010 as a part of a collective effort to construct and choose a flag. Each stripe has a distinct meaning: black represents asexuality, gray means gray-sexuality and demisexuality, white stands for non asexual partners and allies, and purple represents community.


Bisexual Pride Flag

Michael Page introduced the Double attraction Pride Flag in December of 1998 to represent and increase visibility of bisexual peopl

Here’s What the Different LGBTQIA+ Flags Represent

LGBTQIA+

When we reflect of Pride Month, the first image that typically comes to mind is the classic rainbow flag. However, many people don’t realize that along with the Rainbow Pride Flag, there are an array of different identifiers that represent the diverse gay community. While many in the LGBTQIA+ community determine with the all-encompassing rainbow flag, each group has its own flag to represent its unique contributions and stories within the community. Here’s a rundown of the different flags and what they represent.


The Gilbert Baker Pride Flag

The original rainbow pride flag was designed by Gilbert Baker in 1978 at the request of Harvey Milk, the first openly gay elected official in California. Gilbert chose the rainbow as it represents a symbol of hope. 

Original flag colors and meaning: 

Pink: sex; Red: life; Orange: healing; Yellow: sunlight; Green: nature; Turquoise: magic; Blue: harmony; Violet: spirit.

Rainbow Celebration Flag 

This is the iteration of the Pride Flag that we all recognize today, used to symbolize the overall LGBTQIA+ people. In this version, the pink and turquoise were exclu

The Progress Pride flag was developed in 2018 by non-binary American artist and designer Daniel Quasar (who uses xe/xyr pronouns). Based on the iconic rainbow flag from 1978, the redesign celebrates the diversity of the LGBTQ group and calls for a more inclusive society. In 2020, the V&A acquired a bespoke applique version of the Progress Self-acceptance flag that can be seen on display in the Design 1900 – Now gallery.

'Progress' is a reinterpretation of multiple iterations of the pride flag. The original 'rainbow flag' was created by Gilbert Baker in 1978 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 expectation. 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 time and legibility concerns, resulting in the six-colour rainbow flag most commonly used in the first decades of the 21st century.

Baker's flag was embra

what do the stripes on the lgbtq flag mean

Flags of the LGBTIQ Community

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

Rainbow Flag

Created in 1978 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, green for serenity with nature, turquoise for art, indigo for agreement, and violet for liveliness. 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 2018 by nonbinary musician Daniel Quasar, the Progress Pride flag is based on the iconic 1978 rainbow flag. With stripes of black and brown to represent marginalized LGBTIQ+ people of color and the triad of cerulean, pink, and white from the trans flag, the design represents diversity and inclusion.

Trans Flag

Conceived by Monica Helms, an

Pride Flags

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

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

This resource is not intended to provide an exhaustive list of pride flags. If you possess a suggestion for a flag to add or contain 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 established 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 love other men.

    Date: 2016
    Creator: Redesigned by DeviantArt (Tumblr user)
    Flag meaning: The first iteration was created by pridenpositivity (Tumblr user). The flag contains the color blue to represent men and a lime-green carnation in the center, which was popularized by Oscar Wilde