Bandana color meanings in gay community

Flagging for some hanky panky – deciphering the lgbtq+ handkerchief code

By Chris Williams, updated 5 months ago in Lifestyle / LGBT people and culture

Have you ever noticed a guy with a coloured bandana or handkerchief sticking out of his back pocket? Approve you for not knowing how wearing one became the symbol of a secret sex language. Here’s how to decipher what it all means.

The hanky code has been a part of underground gay society for over 40 years, and if you don’t comprehend what it’s all about, we’ll acquire you up to speed in no time.

Perhaps more prevalent in the leather community, you might still find a few practitioners of this means of secret communication. But what’s the hanky code?

What is the hanky code?

It’s cute straightforward. Wearing a coloured handkerchief or a bandana in a particular location on your body can be a way to point out to somebody else what kind of sex you delight in. Colours or patterns represent a diverse sexual activity, while the positioning indicates your preference of role.

The Hanky Code | Emen8(#NSFW)

The bandana is often on display sticking out of a help pocket, or occasionally tied around the upper arm. Typically, the

What Does the Queer Handkerchief Code Reveal?

The LGBTQ+ community has a rich history, filled with symbols, codes, and practices that have evolved over time.

Originating as a discreet develop of communication within the LGBTQ+ people, the hanky code or handkerchief code is a color-coded system where individuals wear specific colored handkerchiefs in their back pockets to transmit sexual roles, interests, and preferences.

This exercise, also known as flagging, has been a longstanding tradition within the collective, symbolizing sexual liberation and expression.

The Same-sex attracted Handkerchief Code is a color-coded system where an individual displays a specific colored handkerchief in their back pocket(s) to communicate their sexual interests and roles.

The left pocket typically signifies a dominant or ‘top’ role, while the right pocket signals a submissive or ‘bottom’ role.

The Golden Origins: From the Gold Rush to the Dance Floor

The inception of the Handkerchief Code traces back to the gold rush settlers in mid-19th century San Francisco. A scarcity of female dance partners led to men dancing together, using handkerchiefs to denote their dance role as lead or follow.

The handkerchi

Fifty Shades of Gay – The Hanky Code

Fetishes fascinate me.Actually, it’s not the particular fetish that I find interesting, but more the journey of self-discovery that leads a person towards a particular fetish.For example, there is a fetish known as Tamakeri (Japanese translation: ball kicking) Yep, it’s just what it sounds like; the erotic pleasure of existence kicked in the nuts.Uh… that’s a ‘hard pass’ for me, but I have questions.

How does a person with an erotic paraphilia (a condition characterized by abnormal sexual desires, typically involving extreme or dangerous activities) discover these desires? What was their “A-ha” moment? When does a man realize that he derives sexual stimulation and satisfaction from getting smashed in the balls? Was it a terrible bounce on the playground? An unfortunate ricochet on the tennis court? And once a man discovers that hammering his nut-sack turns him on, how does he find others who share this very specific inclination towards CBT (cock and ball torture)? Inquiring minds want to know.

Fetishism today has change into commonplace enough to be considered cocktail chatter. We’ve been spoiled by the internet, which has taken the mystery out of almos

When two men are negotiating a sexual encounter or even compatibility to hang out, the phrase “What are you into?” will inevitably come from one or both.. Quite often in “Grindr” chat, this is shortened to be simply “into?” — just love ships used cyphers (flags) to communicate, we queer men have our possess way to communicate sexual preferences and proclivities. It’s called the Hanky Code.

Originating in the early 1970’s in either New York or San Francisco (let’s not even try to settle that debate), the hanky code is a system of signaling sexual preferences, fetishes, and roles by choosing to wear a specifically colored bandana on a particular side of the body. With just a glance at your rear end, (the bandana being tucked in your back pocket) anyone who is in-the-know will know what you’re “into!”

So how do you recognize which color to wear, and where to wear it? The first critical variable is the side of the body on which you choose to wear your colors, because this signals your preferred role:

Left side of the body = Top/Dominant Role
Right side of the body = Bottom/Submissive Role

As a way to remember which is which, consider that we read left to right, so left comes first. Simila

FLAGGING

Handkerchief Code | Bandana | Signaling

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Queer Coding

"Flagging has long been a part of queer subculture — a way of subtly and safely saying I’m here and I’m queer without having to out yourself to the straights. This method was especially employed in the old days (not so old days, it was really only enjoy 30 years ago) when it wasn’t as sound to be outwardly lgbtq+. While our existence is still othered and persecuted in so many ways, we do have more ability to be freely ourselves in public. And thus, flagging has sort of fallen to the wayside."
-Corinne Werder, April 2018

Before Grindr, queers wore their preferences on their sleeves (and back pockets). By using bandanas, hankies, keyrings, or fingernail polish, the queer community has a way of sending a subtle signal or covert code to other members.

In a time where a discreet means of findi