Hey all!
As you know, I’m the Communications Officer; this means I create the hella-rad posters for UniQ as well as other things like this column. In the Creative issue of Salient, we were attacked by an “Angry Poof” about my font and colour choice! So this week, we’re going to explore the rainbow colour scheme that is ever so common in the queer environment!
First things first, I agree with that angry poof that pride is incredibly important; it holds the community together and shows that there is still need for change in the world. Pride, not even necessarily queer pride, is great if you have it, be it in yourself for succeeding in something great, or be it in your community because as a minority you’re accomplishing change and equality. March for those who can’t; make a noise, be heard.
Everyone knows the rainbow – red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet – but what not everyone knows is why. The first flag had hot pink and these colours. Created in 1978 by Gilbert Baker in San Francisco, the flag has since lost some of these colours due to cost or fabric shortness.
The original colours represented the following:
Hot pink – Sexuality
Red – Life
Orange – Healing
Yellow – Sunlight
Green – Nature
Turquoise – Magic/Art
Indigo – Harmony
Violet – Spirit
Okay okay, so this is a little lame, but it brought a community together that had been through abuse and violence by everyone, including by the government. This flag also gave a positive alternative to the pink triangle that was used to persecute homosexuals during the War, a symbol which was adapted into a gay pride symbol to show survival.
The current flag used, because commercially, it can be produced more cheaply, includes red, orange, yellow, green, blue and violet. This flag is generally used because of its history and the fact that the multiple colours represent the diversity within the LGBT* community!
Our history is nothing to be ashamed of; we have really come a long way with human rights, and if a little bit of rainbow has to follow the fonts to stand out, to make our mark, so what about ‘stereotypes’?
I’m sorry that the curly font upset you; I really enjoy “Wolf in the City” as a font and I hope you can get past your hatred of fonts and enjoy what pride is. If colours and fonts are making you feel ashamed or embarrassed to celebrate who you are, I think you need to take a look at yourself, who you are and how you have the freedom you have.
If you guys have issues about how UniQ is being run, come to our AGM (more info soon!) so we can get next year sorted out!
Much love (all the homo),
Jonny Abbott
uniqvictoria@gmail.com
PS Hope you had fun at Ivy xx