Origin of Gay/lesbian symbol - Historum

Jason · October 29th, 2006, 08:42 AM

Does anyone know the origin of the pink triangle and the rainbow?

Vir0n · October 29th, 2006, 10:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jason

Does anyone know the origin of the pink triangle and the rainbow?

The inverted pink triangle was a creation of the Nazis to designate homosexuals in prisons and concentration camps. It was one of many such symbols used to distinguish between the various people they considered unworthy to breathe the same air as the "Aryan" race.

As for the rainbow flag, I have never really thought about it so I looked it up. According to Wikipedia:

The use of rainbow flags has a long tradition; they are displayed in many cultures around the world as a sign of diversity and inclusiveness, of hope and of yearning. This denotation goes back to the rainbow as a symbol of biblical promise, and the use of all the colours of the rainbow symbolises all flags in one. The original gay-pride flag first flew in the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day Parade on June 25, 1978. Each color in the flag has a specific meaning to the homosexual community.

Commander · October 31st, 2006, 10:22 AM

It amazes me how many people still don't recognize these symbols.

I'll hear people say, "why does that guy have a rainbow on his car?"

**Salah** · October 15th, 2010, 07:34 PM

Bump.

I'm surprised that they would use the inverted triangle considering it's history.

**DreamWeaver** · October 16th, 2010, 03:45 AM

Does it not predate the Nazi's?

**avon** · October 16th, 2010, 04:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreamWeaver

Does it not predate the Nazi's?

Not according to this site:

http://www.lambda.org/symbols.htm

Quote:

The real story behind the pink triangle begins prior to World War II. Paragraph 175, a clause in German law, prohibited homosexual relations (much like many states in the U.S. today have laws against "crimes of nature"). In 1935, during Hitler's rise to power, he extended this law to include homosexual kissing, embracing, and even having homosexual fantasies. An estimated 25,000 people were convicted under this law between 1937 and 1939 alone. They were sent to prisons and later concentration camps. Their sentence also included sterilization, most commonly in the form of castration. In 1942, Hitler extended the punishment for homosexuality to death.

...

But then, the question that I'm asking is 'how did the Nazis arrive at this particular symbol?'

The site also answers Salah ad-Din ('I'm surprised that they would use the inverted triangle considering it's history'):

Quote:

In the 1970s, the pink triangle started to be used in conjunction with the gay liberation movement. When people, especially public figures such as law makers, were confronted with such a symbol, they risked being associated with the Nazis if he or she were to attempt to openly limit or prosecute gays. In the 1980s, when the triangle's popularity truly began to take off, ACT-UP (AIDS Coalition To Unleash Power) adopted the it as their symbol, but turned it upright to suggest an active fight rather than passive resignation. I've also been told that some people wear their triangles pointing up if they personally know somebody who has tied of AIDS. In any case, the pink triangle is definitely a symbol very closely connected to oppression and the fight against it, and stands as a vow never to let another Holocaust happen again. Like the word "queer," it is a symbol of hate which has been reclaimed and now stands for pride.

**Iolo** · October 16th, 2010, 04:24 AM

It's a bit like the Christian use of the Cross, I suppose (that was slow to take off too, I believe), or the acceptance in Britain of the offensive terms 'Whig' and 'Tory' by the parties. It is a sign of confidence.