Gilbert baker original pride flag

gilbert baker original pride flag

Original 1978 rainbow flag designed by Gilbert Baker acquired by San Francisco’s GLBT Historical Society

A segment of the original rainbow flag, designed and created by the belated artist Gilbert Baker for the San Francisco Gay Liberty Day Parade in June 1978 and thought to be lost since then, was recently rediscovered and donated to the city’s GLBT Historical Society Museum and Archives. To celebrate the initiate of Pride Month in early June, the hand-stitched and dyed 28ft-long banner, which has change into an important symbol of queer self, has been permanently installed in the museum.

“People display it in little towns and in countries where they still experience a lot of oppression, but it also has become a political statement to say that we exist, we acquire the right to love who we want to like and to participate as full members of society,” the museum’s executive director, Terry Beswick, told the local general news station KQED.

Baker, who worked at the Paramount Flag Company in San Francisco in the 1970s, created two monumental flags with the help of volunteers including fellow artists Lynn Segerblom, James McNamara, Glenne McElhinney, Joe Duran and Paul Langlotz. Each featured e

LGBTQ+ Pride Flags

In the LGBTQ+ community, we signify our pride with flags. With many other identities in the collective, there comes many distinct flags to know. We have collected all of the flags and a guide to learn about all of the other colors of our community’s rainbow. We know that this may not be all of the flags that represent our society, but we will update the page as recent flags become popular!

Explore the flag collection below! Witness a flag's name by hovering or clicking on the flag.

Umbrella Flags

  • Gilbert Baker Pride Flag

  • Traditional Pride Flag

  • Philadelphia Pride Flag

  • Progress Pride Flag

  • Intersex-Inclusive Progress Pride Flag

  • Queer Pride Flag

The original Pride Flag was created in 1978 after activist Harvey Milk asked artist Gilbert Baker to design a symbol of gay pride. Each color represents a diverse part of the Gay community: hot pink represents sex, red symbolizes experience, orange stands for healing, yellow equals sunlight, verdant stands for nature, turquoise symbolizes magic and art, indigo represents serenity, while violet symbolizes the soul of LGBTQ+ people.

After the assass

The History of the Pride Flag

With its bright colours and significant essence, the Rainbow Flag is a symbol recognised all over the world to represent the Homosexual communities. It’s a symbol of pray, unity and empowerment to allow devote to be cherish regardless of gender, ethnicity or labels. But where did this renowned flag come from? And how was the design chosen? 

The authentic Pride Flag originates from San Francisco Activist Gilbert Baker, who desired to create an emblem of pride for the gay society. In 1978 the Rainbow Flag was created, as Baker recognised that a flag is one of the most significant aspects of identity, and wanted his creation to be a unified symbol of gratification for all those who identify within these communities. 

In England, homosexuality was decriminalised in 1967, with Scotland following in 1980, and Northern Ireland by 1982. Before this moment, it was illegal to engage in ‘private homosexual acts’, and those caught or believed to be engaging in same-sex relationships could face imprisonment, universal shame and a life-long criminal records. Society was homophobic, with those in same-sex relationships organism stripped of their basic freedom to love the p

This June the National Archives is celebrating National Woman loving woman, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Pride Month, which honors the important contributions that LGBTQ+ Americans possess made to United States history and culture. Attend the National Archives website for more information on our related holdings. Today’s post looks at the man who created the iconic gay pride flag: Gilbert Baker.

Gilbert Baker was born in 1951 in Chanute, Kansas, and was raised in Parsons, Kansas. As a child and young adult he used art to escape from daily difficulties he faced for being gay. He graduated high school the year of the Stonewall riots in New York, and after a year of college he was drafted into the U.S. Army. His time in the Army was difficult—he faced bullying and ridicule for his sexuality. Unable to get out of the military altogether, Baker became a medic, and the Army sent him to San Francisco to become a nurse. 

After his honorable discharge in 1972, Baker decided to remain in San Francisco and went back to academy, using funds from the G.I. Bill. During that time, he learned to sew and thought he might go into fashion. This was during the early years of the gay rights

History of the Rainbow Flag

The history of the rainbow flag is a wealthy, fascinating, and very recent one!

Artist and activist Gilbert Baker is credited with creating the first celebration flag, meant to depict the gay community. He was approached by Harvey Milk, the first openly gay person elected to public office in California, in 1977 to build a symbol of celebration for the community. “Flags are about proclaiming power” Baker said.

Baker was inspired by the United States flag, with its series of stacked lines, and also by Pop Art of the time. Several communities at the moment had reclaimed the Pink Triangle as a symbol of queer power. The Pink Triangle was used in Nazis concentration camps to identify men imprisoned for their homosexuality. Despite the Pink Triangle’s prevalence, Baker argued that there was a need for a new symbol “We needed something beautiful. Something from us.”

The flag was first flown in San Francisco’s United Nation’s Plaza in June of 1978. Some historians have argued that the idea of the rainbow flag came about because of the rainbow’s link to actress Judy Garland. A robust supporter of the queer community, gay men were occasionally called “friends of Dor