Isn't that Emily Gwen person a grifter who lied to people about being homeless while she had a rich dad? (sorry if this is wrong, i barely remember the polemic but i think it was her)
coined by @lyaklkesflags on pinterest; An identity and flag exclusively for Indigenous peoples who are lesbian - experiencing queer attraction to women.
This is inclusive of Indigenous peoples from all over the world, not just the Americas.
original coiner does not want terms or flags uploaded to wikis
The Sunset Lesbian Flag Needs a New Meaning! And you can help with that!
The current flag of the lesbian community, with 7 and 5 stripes, the original created by @shapeshifter-of-constellation , The meanings given by @sadlesbeandisaster And the 5-color version created with its own meanings given by @purrfectbycath
The Current Situation of the Flag
The lesbian flag, despite being a very important symbol for the community, recognized and used by many people around the world, does not have a direct connection to the historical or cultural elements of the lesbian community itself. Although its colors already have their own meanings, there is still an opportunity to further deepen this symbolism.
Is this a problem? It depends.
No, because this does not diminish the importance of the flag or the way it represents many lesbians. It continues to be a symbol of pride, identity, and belonging.
But yes, because symbols also carry memories. The lesbian community has a long history of resistance, activism, and the fight for representation, and that history also deserves to be reflected in the symbols it embraces. Pride has always been connected to the struggle for rights, equality, and visibility. Therefore, understanding the meanings of the symbols we carry is a way of honoring our history and recognizing those who came before us.
Am I Proposing a New Flag?
No! The goal is not to create a new flag or replace the current one. The lesbian flag already represents the community very well, and its adoption and popularity show how many people have felt represented by it. Creating a new flag now could make it more difficult to consolidate a symbol of lesbian visibility that has finally gained widespread recognition, only for it to be replaced once again by its predecessor: the Lipstick Lesbian flag, which still occasionally appears today.
Current and Unique Meanings of the Lesbian Flag: the 5-stripe and 7-stripe versions contain different meanings.
What Are We Adding/Changing?
New associations for the colors;
Readjustment of the color gradient;
Addition of historical symbols and references to the flag.
What Are We Not Doing?
Changing the flag's design, meanings, stripes, colors, or any other elements;
Claiming credit as the creator of the flag.
With that understood, we can move on!
Reorganization of the Colors
The first thing that came to mind was the need to adjust the original flag's color gradient. Since the current lesbian flag is the combination of two earlier flags—the All Pink Flag and the Butch Flag, both inspired by the Lipstick Lesbian flag—its color gradient is not particularly appealing for physical products nor practical for everyday use. Therefore, I saw this version of the flag I found on Wikipedia and tried to transform it into a digital version. proposing a slight adjustment to the color tones to improve their visual appearance.
Flag with the design I saw on the internet.
While researching lesbian flags and symbols, I came across the flag that began the process of replacing the Lipstick Lesbian flag: the flag inspired by a poem by Sappho, created by Lydia. Its symbolism as a flag is excellent and demonstrates how a flag can unite history and representation within a single symbol.
Lesbos and Sappho
Lesbos is a Greek island located in the Aegean Sea, best known as the home of Sappho, one of the most influential poets of Ancient Greece. Sappho lived around the 7th century BCE and became renowned for her lyric poetry, particularly her writings about love, emotions, beauty, and relationships between women. The name of the island later gave rise to the word lesbian, which became associated with women who love women. Because of Sappho's poetry and her connection to affection between women, the term Sapphic also became associated with this history. Her legacy remains an important part of lesbian history and culture.
I began reading other poems by Sappho and exploring their references, while also researching symbols of the lesbian movement. From this, I arrived at the following proposal for new meanings for the flag's colors.
Proposal for Colors Meanings
❤️ Red: Sappho's Apple
The apple represents beauty, desire, and the continuity of lesbian history through time. In Sappho's poetry, the fruit ripening at the top of the branch symbolizes something precious, admired, and beyond reach. This image can be reinterpreted as representing the voices and affections between women that, although often made invisible, continue to exist and be remembered.
Sappho, Fragment 105a: "Like the sweet apple reddening on the highest branch, on the highest branch the apple-pickers forgot it; no, they did not forget it, but they could not reach it."
🧡 Orange: Sun of Lesbos
The sun represents the connection to the island of Lesbos, where Sappho lived and wrote her poetry, linking the flag to the historical roots of the lesbian community. In addition, the sun has become a metaphor in contemporary lesbian culture, associating lesbian existence with light, warmth, and life, reinforcing the idea that lesbian presence illuminates, transforms, and contributes to society.
The sun was already a symbol within LGBTQIAPN+ culture even before the creation of the rainbow flag. During the 1970s and 1980s, it appeared on posters, buttons, and materials for events such as Gay Freedom Day, representing hope, freedom, and pride. In 1978, this symbolism was incorporated into the Pride flag designed by Gilbert Baker, in which the yellow stripe represents sunlight. In addition, the slogan "A day without lesbians is like a day without sunshine" became a well-known phrase within the lesbian community, reinforcing the association between the sun and lesbian existence, visibility, and appreciation.
The red and orange stripes of the lesbian flag can also be interpreted as a symbolic connection to some of the stripes of the rainbow flag. Besides following the same order as its first colors, they connect lesbian history to the broader LGBTQIA+ struggle: red representing life and orange representing healing, symbolizing lesbian existence and resilience.
Visual description with images
🤍 White: Butterflies
They represent transformation, renewal, and freedom. Their metamorphosis has become a metaphor widely used by parts of the queer community to symbolize the process of self-discovery, growth, and the search to live one's identity authentically. In this proposal, they represent the diversity of experiences that make up the lesbian community and the continuous construction of its history.
The choice of white butterflies also connects with the transgender pride flag. Inspired by the meaning of the white stripe, which represents people in transition, intersex people, and gender identities that do not completely fit within the binary, this proposal reaffirms that trans women and non-binary people are also part of the lesbian community. In this way, white symbolizes inclusion, diversity, and the recognition that different experiences strengthen lesbian history and identity.
🩷 Light Pink: Shells of the Aegean Sea
Light pink represents the pink shells found in the waters of the Aegean Sea, the region where the island of Lesbos is located. These natural elements connect the flag to the Mediterranean landscape that surrounded the territory where Sappho lived and wrote her poetry. The shell symbolizes the connection to the ancient roots of the lesbian community, representing memory, belonging, and the connection to the place that gave it its name.
💜 Dark Pink: Sappho's Violets
Dark pink represents the violets present in Sappho's poetry, one of the flowers most associated with the Sapphic tradition and lesbian history. The violet became a cultural symbol connected to women who love women, linking the contemporary lesbian community to poetry, affection, and stories that have crossed generations since Ancient Greece. Although violets are generally associated with purple, there are also variations of the flower in shades of pink.
Sappho, Fragment 94: "And many crowns of roses, violets, and saffron, together you placed upon your head..."
Final Design
I tried my best to think of a symbolism that was a little more human than the current meaning, something that would connect from the beginning, so I chose symbols from nature.That's exactly what connects us. Gilbert Baker, creator of the rainbow flag, also agreed with this when he originally designed the flag, and I believe that honoring that is the best way forward to represent people.
Image showing the original meaning of the flag but with the new proposed colors.
A new image showing the meaning of the proposed colors.
FAQ
"I didn't like your interpretation."
That's fine, you can ignore it, or you can have your own personal interpretation!
Who do I give credit to?
It depends on which version of the flag you use; if you use the 5-color flag, you should give credit to @purrfectbycath for creating!
If you are using the 7-color flag, you can give credit to @shapeshifter-of-constellation for the flag design and to @sadlesbeandisaster (through the meanings of the stripes)
“I didn't like that, will you change it?”
Probably? If I see the reason for the criticism as a valid point, further changes to the Meaning may occur, which is why it's important for people to give their opinions so that we can improve.
Conclusion
Symbols are not just images or colors: they preserve the stories, memories, and experiences of a community. This idea follows the same principle of transforming a flag into a deeper representation of a community's identity and journey. By connecting its colors to elements of lesbian history, experiences, and lesbian resistance, the intention is to strengthen the relationship between the symbol and the people who raise it. The flag already represents lesbian pride; this proposal only seeks to value its history, its culture, and the voices that have built this community over time.
I like the sappho lesbian flag [link], but I find it eyestraining. Thus, I made a version where the two bottom stripes are less bright. The colors are all still web-safe, in line with the creator's original vision. [PT: The colors are all still web-safe /End PT.]
@radiomogai
IDs under cut!
[ID: a flag with four stripes. From top to bottom, they are purple, pink, yellow, and green. /End ID.]
[ID: the same flag with hexcodes for each color written on each stripe. From top to bottom, they are #663399, #ff6699, #ffcc66, and #99cc33. /End ID.]
