The trans flag pattern was designed to appear “correct” no matter which way it flays, symbolizing “us finding correctness in our lives”. The stripe in the middle is white, for those who are intersex, transitioning or consider themselves having a neutral or undefined gender.” The stripes next to them are pink, the traditional color for baby girls. Monica describes the meaning of the flag this way: “The stripes at the top and bottom are light blue, the traditional color for baby boys. It was designed by a trans woman named Monica Helms in 1999.
The transgender pride flag first appeared in the LGBT pride parade in Phoenix, AZ in 2000. The trans flag represents the transgender community and consists of five horizontal stripes: two light blue, two pinks, and one white in the center. Among the new additions are the blue, pink and white transgender flag emoji and the trans symbol. ( Lobsters against Transphobia started using the symbol because lobsters share both male and female characteristics.)īut in 2020 Unicode announced the release of 117 new emojis. You are valid, loved, and heard.Until recently, the transgender community has been using a lobster emoji to represent itself. Reminder that today is Transgender Remembrance Day and we need to be doing so much better as allies.?️⚧️ Philadelphia Mayor’s Office of LGBT Affairs March 24, 2021 Representation at all levels of leadership is critical to ensure that all of our communities are seen, respected, and cared for. Levine on her historic confirmation this evening, especially as it comes just a week before Trans Day of Visibility. Just while I'm here… ?️⚧️ #TransRightsAreHumanRights The Transgender Flag emoji ?️⚧️ is also used to show support toward the transgender community, especially on occasions like International Transgender Day of Visibility (March 31) and Transgender Day of Remembrance (November 20). #WomensHistoryMonth includes transgender women. Since trans is trending I just want to say, I am proud to be trans and others who identify as trans should be proud too! You are valid and you matter! Don’t let anyone else tell you otherwise! ?️⚧️ The emoji is often used in Twitter usernames. On social media, the Transgender Flag emoji ?️⚧️ is used by transgender and nonbinary people to express pride in their community and their own gender identities. So we’re going to take it as our symbol, until we get the Trans emoji we deserve.” The group ended the petition with “Lobsters can actually be gynandromorphs (an organism that contains both male and female characteristics). Surely we deserve the same rights you have afforded crustaceans?” In a petition directed toward the Unicode Consortium, the group explained that they chose the lobster to express outrage of Unicode seemingly prioritizing crustaceans over transgender people in their decisions of which emoji to approve: “Unicode granted the Lobster emoji proposal, which argued that people suffered ‘frustration and confusion’ at having to use a shrimp or crab emoji instead of a lobster. This usage of the Lobster emoji ? was due to the activism of the group Lobsters Against Transphobia. Prior to the addition of the Transgender Flag emoji ?️⚧️, transgender activists began to use the Lobster emoji ? in 2018 to represent transgender pride and support for a transgender flag emoji. These campaigns would gather widespread support and would eventually lead to a Unicode proposal for a transgender flag emoji submitted in 2019 that was backed by representatives from Google and Microsoft. For the next several years, activists would launch campaigns to drive support for a transgender flag emoji.
As early as 2016, Google creative director Tea Uglow had submitted a proposal for a transgender flag emoji to the Unicode Consortium. As of March 2021, the Transgender Flag emoji ?️⚧️ is not yet supported on Microsoft devices and will instead appear as a box followed by the Transgender Symbol emoji ⚧️.īefore it was eventually approved in 2020, people had been campaigning for a transgender flag emoji for years.
The Twitter version of the emoji resembles the flag in the form of a rectangle with rounded corners. On most major platforms, the emoji depicts the transgender flag, composed of blue, pink, and white stripes, waving in the wind. The emoji is a combination of the White Flag emoji ?️ and the Transgender Symbol emoji ⚧️. The Transgender Flag emoji ?️⚧️ was added to Emoji 13.0 in 2020.