In addition to the rainbow, many other flags and symbols are used to communicate specific identities within the LGBT community. LGBT individuals and allies currently use rainbow flags and many rainbow-themed items and color schemes as an outward symbol of their identity or support. The flag is typically flown horizontally, with the red stripe on top, as it would be in a natural rainbow. Baker's first rainbow flag had eight colors, though the most common variant consists of six stripes: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet. Originally devised by artist Gilbert Baker, the design has undergone several revisions since its debut in 1978, first to remove colors then restore them based on availability of fabrics. Using a rainbow flag as a symbol of gay pride began in San Francisco, but eventually became common at LGBT rights events worldwide.
Also known as the gay pride flag or LGBT pride flag, the colors reflect the diversity of the LGBT community and the spectrum of human sexuality and gender. Rodriguez in San Francisco contributed to this report.The rainbow flag is a symbol of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender ( LGBT) and queer pride and LGBT social movements. Turkish police have repeatedly in recent days prevented activists from participating in LGBT rallies.Īssociated Press writer Tom Hays in New York, Michael Tarm in Chicago and Olga R. Organizers nearly doubled their corps of private security agents, to 160.Īt a gay street parade in Turkey, a prominent German lawmaker and outspoken gay rights advocate was temporarily detained Sunday when he wanted to speak publicly at the end of Pride Week. Some participants didn't welcoming the stepped-up security: Two honorary grand marshals and a health clinic that serves sex workers withdrew Friday from the parade to protest the heavy police presence.Ĭhicago police put 200 more officers than usual on duty for the city's pride parade Sunday. San Francisco spectators faced metal detectors for the first time, and more police than usual were keeping watch. Thousands of uniformed officers lined the route, supplemented by plainclothes officers in the crowd. New York police deployed roving counterterrorism units and used bomb-sniffing dogs, rooftop observation posts, police helicopters and thousands of officers to provide extra layers of security at Sunday's parade. Sunday's parades did have a new milestone to mark: President Barack Obama on Friday designated the site around New York City's Stonewall Inn as the first national monument to gay rights. "People need to remember we're still fighting for equality." "A lot of my gay friends and relatives are still being shunned away by their families and communities," said Desamparado, 31. She said she felt the need to remind people the fight for equality is not over. Richel Desamparado, of Oakland, California, was marching and carrying a photo of Orlando victim Stanley Almodovar. It was a similar feeling in San Francisco, where men in glittery white wings walked on stilts and women in leather pants rode motorcycles as the parade moved along. "We're aware of Orlando but not overwhelmed by it." "It is another on a list of brutalities over the years (against gays)," said Joe Conklin, 74, of Chicago, as he sat on the back of a float waiting for the OK to move out. Many participants said the tributes to the dead in Orlando didn't dampen the energy and fun associated with the pride parade. Above each photo were the words, "Never forget."ĭespite the somber start, parade-goers seemed as enthusiastic as ever once marchers and floats began moving, cheering and dancing along the route. In Chicago, 49 marchers at the head of the parade each held aloft a poster-sized photograph of a different Orlando victim as the procession wound through the city. They came two weeks after the nation's deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. New York's parade was one of several being held Sunday across the country, along with San Francisco, Chicago, Minneapolis and St.
But then Orlando happened, and seeing so many of my friends shrink in fear made me realize that coming here was more important," said Hillman, wearing an anti-assault guns T-shirt. "For me, I wasn't going to ride because I have 17-month-old twins at home. The transgender New Yorker said he hadn't planned to come to the march. Kenny Hillman, a 39-year-old Brooklyn filmmaker, was ready to roar his Triumph Bonneville down Fifth Avenue. "What happened in Orlando made me want to come more," said Restrepo, swathed in a multicolored scarf.