Although the symbolic use of bright colors has long been connected to queer culture, these flags, fittingly, are a highly visible, widerspread signal of queer identity compared to some of the slightly more covert LGBTQ+ symbols that preceded them.
Today, there are dozens of LGBTQ+ flags representing just as many gender identities, sexualities and intersections of communities. Each color celebrates an aspect of queer Pride: Hot pink Sex. Its colors were meant to represent aspects of the LGBT. Philadelphia redesigned the Pride flag in 2017 to include the colors brown and black in an effort to promote diversity and inclusion and to 'honor the lives of our Black and brown LGBTQ siblings. Though some dispute whether Baker was the sole creator of the flag that started it all, its symbolism remains. Much like the communities they represent, these flags are in a constant state of evolution, expanding to better and more inclusively encompass every queer identity under the rainbow. The original flag, made in 1978 by Gilbert Baker, was create to fly in the San Francisco Pride Parade.
Ever since the first rainbow-hued LGBTQ flag was created in 1978, pride flags have been a colorful symbol of queer identity. Red, orange, yellow, green, indigo and violet, the six colors in the Pride (Rainbow) flag, stand for life, healing, sunlight, nature, serenity and spirit. The most recognizable letters of the entire acronym, L (Lesbian) and G (Gay), represent the homosexual people of the LGBTQ+ community.