Lesbian flags explained

Various lesbian flags have been used to symbolise the lesbian community. Since 1999, many designs have been proposed and used. Although personal preferences exist, as well as various controversies, no design has been widely accepted by the community as the lesbian flag.

History

Labrys flag

The labrys lesbian flag was created in 1999 by graphic designer Sean Campbell, and published in June 2000 in the Palm Springs edition of the Gay and Lesbian Times Pride issue.[1] [2] The design involves a labrys, a type of double-headed axe, superimposed on the inverted black triangle, set against a violet background. Among its functions, the labrys was associated as a weapon used by the Amazons of mythology.[3] [4] In the 1970s it was adopted as a symbol of empowerment by the lesbian feminist community.[5] Women considered asocial by Nazi Germany for not conforming to the Nazi ideal of a woman, which included homosexual females, were condemned to concentration camps[6] and wore an inverted black triangle badge to identify them.[7] Some lesbians reclaimed this symbol as gay men reclaimed the pink triangle (many lesbians also reclaimed the pink triangle although lesbians were not included in Paragraph 175 of the German criminal code). The color violet became associated with lesbians via the poetry of Sappho.[8]

Lipstick flag

The lipstick lesbian flag was introduced in 2010 in the weblog This Lesbian Life.[9] [10] The design contains a red kiss in the left corner, superimposed on seven stripes consisting of six shades of red and pink colors and a white bar in the center.[11] [12] The lipstick lesbian flag represents "homosexual women who have a more feminine gender expression", however it has not been widely adopted. Some lesbians have argued that the lipstick flag does not also represent butch lesbians, while others oppose its use due to controversial comments made by the flag's designer on her blog.[13] [14]

Pink flag

The "pink" lesbian flag was derived from the colors of the lipstick lesbian flag, with the kiss mark excluded. The pink flag attracted more use as a general lesbian pride flag.[15]

Orange-Pink flag

The "orange-pink" lesbian flag, modeled after the seven-band pink flag, was introduced on Tumblr by blogger Emily Gwen in 2018.[16] [17] The colors include dark orange for "gender non-conformity", orange for "independence", light orange for "community", white for "unique relationships to womanhood", pink for "serenity and peace", dusty pink for "love and sex", and dark rose for "femininity". A five-stripes version was soon derived from the 2018 colors.[18]

Gallery

Flags at events

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Bendix. Trish. Why don't lesbians have a pride flag of our own?. AfterEllen. 8 September 2015. 8 June 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20150909150736/https://www.afterellen.com/people/452039-dont-lesbians-pride-flag. 9 September 2015.
  2. Web site: A Complete Guide To All The LGBTQ+ Flags & What They Mean. 19 June 2019. 6 July 2019. Refinery29. Kasandra Brabaw. 12 March 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210312065228/https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/lgbt-pride-flags-meaning. live.
  3. Book: The Alyson Almanac: A Treasury of Information for the Gay and Lesbian Community. 1989. Alyson Publications. Boston, Massachusetts. Gay Symbols Through the Ages. 99–100. 0-932870-19-8.
  4. Book: Murphy. Timothy F.. Reader's Guide to Lesbian and Gay Studies. 2000. 1st. 44. Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers. Chicago, Illinois. 1-57958-142-0.
  5. Book: Zimmerman. Bonnie. Bonnie Zimmerman. Lesbian Histories and Cultures: An Encyclopedia. 2000. 1st. 1 (Encyclopedia of Lesbian and Gay Histories and Cultures). Garland Publishing. 0-8153-1920-7. 748. Symbols (by Christy Stevens). https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofle00bzim/page/748. registration.
  6. Web site: Lesbians Under the Nazi Regime . . . 31 March 2021 . 14 June 2021 . 25 March 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220325155611/https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/lesbians-under-the-nazi-regime . live .
  7. News: Elman. R. Amy. Triangles and Tribulations: The Politics of Nazi Symbols. Remember.org. 10 December 2016. 20 December 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161220110705/http://remember.org/educate/elman. live. (Originally published in the Journal of Homosexuality, 1996, 30 (3): pp.1–11,,)
  8. Web site: Prager. Sarah. Four Flowering Plants That Have Been Decidedly Queered (Sapphic Violets). JSTOR Daily. 29 January 2020. 19 July 2020. 3 February 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210203190720/https://daily.jstor.org/four-flowering-plants-decidedly-queered/. live.
  9. Web site: Mathers. Charlie. 18 Pride flags you might not have seen before. Gay Star News. 1 January 2018. 4 June 2019. 1 June 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210601020941/https://www.gaystarnews.com/article/pride-flag-community/. dead. (The Mathers article shows the derivative design, but not the original flag.)
  10. Web site: Redwood . Soleil . A Horniman Lesbian Flag . . 26 February 2020 . 21 November 2021 . 16 August 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230816211624/https://www.horniman.ac.uk/story/a-horniman-lesbian-flag/ . live .
  11. Web site: McCray. Natalie. LLFlag. This Lesbian Life. July 2010. 9 June 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20161011120237/https://thislesbianlife.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/llflag1.jpg. 11 October 2016.
  12. News: Rawles. Timothy. The many flags of the LGBT community. San Diego Gay & Lesbian News. 12 July 2019. 3 September 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190712231000/https://sdgln.com/social/2019/07/12/many-flags-lgbt-community. 12 July 2019. dead.
  13. Web site: Lesbian flag: The history, origins, meaning and symbolism . 18 March 2021 . . 29 January 2023 . 24 January 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230124121312/https://www.cosmopolitan.com/uk/love-sex/relationships/a30254147/lesbian-flag/ . live .
  14. Web site: A Complete Guide To All The LGBTQ+ Flags & What They Mean. 19 June 2019. 6 July 2019. Refinery29. Kasandra Brabaw. 12 March 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210312065228/https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/lgbt-pride-flags-meaning#slide-4. live.
  15. News: Andersson . Jasmine . Pride flag guide: what the different flags look like, and what they all mean . . 4 July 2019 . 15 September 2021 . https://archive.today/20210915140335/https://inews.co.uk/news/pride-flag-guide-what-the-different-flags-look-like-and-what-they-all-mean-309916 . 15 September 2021 . dead.
  16. News: Dastagir. Alia E.. Oliver. David. LGBTQ Pride flags go beyond the classic rainbow. Here's what each one means. USA Today. 1 June 2021. 1 June 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210601103213if_/https://eu.usatoday.com/in-depth/graphics/2021/06/01/lgbtq-pride-flags-meaning-gay-lesbian-transgender-nonbinary-intersex-pride-flags-represent/5133381001/. 1 June 2021.
  17. Web site: LGBTQIA+ Symbols: New Lesbian Flag(s) . . April 2020 . 6 June 2021 . 2 June 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210602011519/https://www.odu.edu/life/diversity/resources/lgbtqa/symbols . dead.
  18. Web site: Murphy-Kasp. Paul. Pride in London: What do all the flags mean?. BBC News. 6 July 2019. 6 July 2019. 17 June 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200617211013/https://www.bbc.com/news/av/uk-england-london-48885240/pride-in-london-what-do-all-the-flags-mean. live. (video)

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