CLASSIC 6 STRIPE RAINBOW HAND FLAG - 23cm x 15cm

The Rainbow flag has gone through many incarnations and continues to evolve. Originally created by Gilbert Baker for the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day Parade in 1978, the first rainbow flags had 8 colours representing the totality of human experience. Pink for Sex. Red for Life. Orange for Healing. Yellow for Sunlight. Green for Nature. Turquoise for Magic. Blue for Serenity. Purple for Spirit.

After the assassination of Harvey Milk that year, demand for the flags skyrocketed, and the pink stripe was dropped in order to use existing seven colour rainbow fabrics.

In 1979, the flag was modified again. Aiming to decorate the street lamps along the parade route with hundreds of rainbow banners, Baker decided to split the motif in two with an even number of stripes flanking each lamp pole. To achieve this effect, he dropped the turquoise stripe that had been used in the seven-stripe flag. The result was the six-stripe version of the flag that would become the standard for future production—red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple.

• Flag size: 23cm x 15cm (9" x 6")
• 100% polyester
• Screen printed in proud, clear colours