Hi there are ppl discussing where I live about the blue for psychiatric disabilities, since it reminds of light it all blue campaign controversy. what should I reply them?
https://www.instagram.com/p/DKNxEN_utUS
I don't have an Instagram account, BTW (I stay away from all things Meta™ as much as I can).
I assume you're talking about the blue (or cyan, depending on how you categorize it) stripe on the Disability Pride Flag. Correct?
I chose those colors for the flag (black, red, yellow, white, blue, and green) because they are all of the six "standard" flag colors. Together, they represent a global community, united by common experiences, rather than national borders (just as the official flag of the Olympics has all six colors, to unite, at least in theory, the global community of athletes). Swapping out the blue stripe for a non-standard color would break that symbolism.
That said, Tumblr user @intervex has also raised concerns about each stripe representing a specific medical category of disability. And back in September, 2024, they proposed having each stripe represent a different conceptual model of disability, instead.
But that raises a similar problem: there are a lot more than six models of disability, and trying to pin down a single meaning for each stripe will always leave someone out.
So (perhaps) it's best to just say: "The five colored bands cutting through the black field represent the wide variety of Disability Experience, even as we work in solidarity, to fight for Justice and Equity."
And we can use the different colors of the flag as a conversation opener to discuss the different ways disability is experienced.
