WWhile rainbow-striped flags are the most iconic symbol of the LGBTQ+ community, several variations of the pride flag have been designed over the years to honor the sexualities and gender identities of people around the world.
The transgender pride flag, which represents the 1.6 million people over the age of 13 who identify as transgender in the U.S., according to the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law, is one of them. The emblem was created by Monica Helms, transgender activist and co-founder of the Transgender American Veterans Association, in 1999.
The flag is a trifecta of colors, with light blue and pink representing the gender roles assigned to children at birth. The middle white stripe, however, was included to honor people who are intersex, gender non-conforming or transitioning, according to Andy Campbell. Queer Design.
The five-stripe flag is also symmetrical, so “no matter which way you fly it, it will always be correct, meaning we have found the correction in our lives,” Helms said in Queer Design.
The flag first debuted at a pride parade in Phoenix in 2000, although the original five-stripe flag that Helms created is currently in Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C.
Genny Beemyn, director of the Stonewall Center at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, tells TIME that flags “provide a sense of belonging to those who are part of the group and give people who want to be allies of individuals in that group a way to show their support.” .” Last year, flying or waving pride flags became heavily politicized.
See more information: Why is Pride Month in June?
In Florida, cities can no longer light their bridges in any color other than red, white and blue, under new guidance from the local Department of Transportation. (although a city challenged this regulation on the weekend). Residents of Huntington Beach, California, historically voted for the ban the pride flag — along with other religious or breast cancer awareness flags — be flown on any city property. Downey, another California city, also chose to enact a similar “neutral” flag policy. Tennessee lawmakers have also proposed a bill that would ban the display of political and ideological flags in public schools, although the measure fell in April.
Across the Bering Strait, Russia is also targeting pride flags. The country’s Supreme Court classified the LGBTQ+ community as an extremist group in 2023. This decision also banned the display of symbols of extremist organizations, including pride flags.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s most recent annual crime report showed that anti-LGBTQ+ hate crimes in the U.S. rose steadily from the previous year, with a almost 33% increase in hate crimes reported based on gender identity. Last year, a record number of anti-LGBTQ+ bills were introduced in state legislatures, prompting the Human Rights Campaign to issue a national state of emergency for LGBTQ+ people in the US for the first time. The State Department issued a global travel advisory in May, citing increased attacks against LGBTQ+ people during Pride events.
Beemyn notes that the country is increasingly polarized on trans issues. “A lot of it takes advantage of people’s ignorance and fears, especially regarding the trans community,” says Beemyn. “There may be a much longer way [for trans rights]given the level of hostility in this country towards trans people, but that will change over time because young people will make a change.”
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This story originally appeared on Time.com read the full story
