Photos By Gail

Some symbols can move the whole world. The Rainbow Flag, first unfurled at the San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Freedom Day Parade on June 25, 1978, is a gleaming example. Led by Gilbert Baker (1951  – 2017), a political activist and designer, 30 volunteers hand-dyed and stitched rainbow flags for the event.

Baker, who called the rainbow a “natural flag in the sky,“ was inspired by the proliferation of the US flag in popular culture as a symbol of commemoration, power, and festivity. MoMA first displayed the contemporary, mass-produced version of the flag on June 26, 2015, the day that the US Supreme Court made the historic decision to legitimate same-sex marriage. The Rainbow Flag continues to symbolize pride, acceptance, community, diversity, and, above all, love.

Photographed in the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.