Gilbert Baker: The man behind the Pride flag
By Jordan Redman
Staff Writer
June 14 is Flag Day, what better way to celebrate than recognizing the man who created the rainbow flag, Gilbert Baker?
After hand-dying fabric eight different colors, Baker created the rainbow flag. A symbol which would become a prominent sign of pride for the LGBT community.
Baker created the flag in the attic of a San Francisco gay community center in 1978. He became friends with Harvey Milk during his time in San Francisco. Milk was the first openly gay person to be elected to public office in California.
The gay and lesbian community sought a symbol beyond the pink triangle, the symbol Nazis put on gays during the Holocaust.
The original flag included eight colors. Each color represented different aspects of the community. The colors were hot pink, red, orange, yellow, green, turquoise, indigo and violet. They represented: sex, life, healing, sun, serenity with nature, art, harmony and spirit.
“We needed something beautiful, something from us,” Baker said. “The rainbow is so perfect because it really fits our diversity in terms of race, gender, ages, all of those things. Plus, it’s a natural flag — it’s from the sky!”
The first rainbow flag was flown on Gay Pride Day on June 25, 1978, in the United Nations Plaza in San Francisco.
There are only six colors in the modern-day Pride flag. Baker dropped two of the colors to mass produce the flag. Pink was too expensive to make in mass quantities, and he thought it was best to go with an even six colors.
Today, the flag has red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple stripes. The International Congress of Flag Makers recognizes the six-striped version.
Baker’s original rainbow flag was acquired by the Museum of Modern Art and added to its design collection.
Baker has designed many other flags over the years, for the Democratic National Convention, for the Super Bowl, and for heads of state, from the premiere of China to the president of Venezuela, to the king of Spain.
A book was later published depicting the history of the LGBT flag. “Pride: The Story of Harvey Milk and the Rainbow Flag,” written by Rob Sanders and illustrated by Steven Salerno, was called “An essential LGBTQ children’s book” by Out magazine.
“In this deeply moving and empowering true story, young readers will trace the life of the Gay Pride Flag, from its beginnings in 1978 with social activist Harvey Milk and designer Gilbert Baker to its spanning of the globe and its role in today’s world,” says the book’s description.
“Award-winning author Rob Sanders’s stirring text, and acclaimed illustrator Steven Salerno’s evocative images combine to tell this remarkable – and undertold – story. A story of love, hope, equality and pride.”
Inspired by media coverage on the day U.S. Supreme Court issued its 2015 landmark decision legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide, rainbow lights were widely displayed.
“It seemed like the entire world was suddenly a rainbow,” the writer told NBC News. “Niagara Falls had rainbow lights shining on it, the White House had rainbow lights shining on it, and it dawned on me that this was a story that kids needed to know. They didn’t know the origin of the pride flag or its importance to our community, and I wanted to tell that story.”
Sadly, Baker died of heart disease in 2017. His art remains a symbol of diversity and pride for the LGBT community.
Copyright The Gayly. June 14, 2018. 11:09 a.m. CST.