Let’s wave the flag & capture your rainbow

June is Pride Month and we believe Pride and photography go together like, well, all the colors in the rainbow! 

This month-long celebration commemorates the heroic work done for LGBTQ rights and culture and honors the continued fight for important freedoms like the freedom of expression and the freedom to love.

We’re proud to celebrate Pride with the LGBTQ community! Read on to learn more about Pride Month, including how to honor it and celebrate the beauty of diversity.

Why June?

This June marks the 51st Pride Month as we shine a spotlight on this beautiful, colorful celebration of diversity and freedom. But why June?

The Gay Liberation Movement officially kicked off in 1969, when The Stonewall Inn, a popular gay bar in New York, was raided by police on June 28. While such raids were common, this particular event was the breaking point for the gay community who decided it was time to fight back. And so commenced the historic Stonewall Riots which lasted for five days.

In 1970, the first Pride Parade took place in New York to commemorate the uprising and all the individuals fighting so valiantly for gay rights. Since then, every June marks Pride Month, celebrating LGBTQ culture, rights, and activists with street festivals and organized events, parades and marches, drag performances and theater, intimate gatherings, and roaring parties.

Why pride & rainbows?

Rainbows have been a symbol of hope for millennia. But how did LGBTQ rights and culture come to be associated with the colorful rainbow and the term “pride?”

Pride

Remember that first Pride parade in New York in 1970? It was organized by Brenda Howard, a bisexual activist who was also known as the “Mother of Pride.” She dedicated her life and every ounce of personal pride to the fight for gay rights. In so doing, her nickname was passed on to the parade and an entire movement, observed each June but celebrated year-round.

Rainbow “Pride” Flag

While there are many different types of Pride flags flown around the world, perhaps the most recognized one is the rainbow flag. 

It first appeared in 1978 when San Francisco City Supervisor, Harvey Milk, commissioned artist and designer, Gilbert Baker, to create a flag to fly over the city’s Pride celebrations. Harvey Milk was one of the first openly gay men elected to public office and Gilbert Baker a prominent gay rights activist. Together, these two are responsible for one of the most beloved and well-known symbols of the LGBTQ community.

When asked about the inspiration behind the design and colors of the rainbow flag, Gilbert expressed that he wanted to create a flag that both honored the U.S. flag while celebrating the diversity within the gay community. Thus was born a flag of stripes and rainbow colors. In 2021 the rainbow flag was altered to include black and brown stripes to express solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement and BIPOC communities, as well as blue and pink stripes to incorporate the trans pride flag.

How to celebrate?

Last year Pride celebrations got creative and went virtual. This year we get to enjoy that continued ingenuity along with a return to in-person events, and not just in June! Celebrations are slated for all year.

Here’s a quick, fun checklist of how to celebrate and show your Pride, this month and all year. Click on the links for great information on how to:

• Attend in-person events.

• Support local LGBTQ businesses

• Donate to human rights & LGBTQ charities

• Host an LGBTQ street party or gathering

• Fly one of the rainbow pride flags

Get out and see what’s happening in your own community, decorate the house, have a get-together, and hop online to be part of this important celebration. Find other great, timeless ideas in our 50th Anniversary of Pride post.

Ready to capture your colors?

Whether you are part of the LGBTQ community or a fierce ally, one of the best ways to celebrate Pride and continue the ongoing fight for LGBTQ rights is to let your own individuality shine, uninhibited. 

Angle is dedicated to diversity and a fervent advocate of the LGBTQ community. Our professional photographers around the world want to use all their skills and all the colors of light to capture all the beauty, color, and diversity of our clients.

Let a personalized photoshoot be part of your Pride celebrations. Have the joy of choosing a setting, photographer, and package that reflects your interests, style, and individuality.