The Pride Flag in one of its more effective renditions, set in a bamboo forest on the steps leading up to a restaurant in the Shangri-La complex off Alberni Street.
This is the latest version of the flag, originated by Gilbert Baker in 1978 with its rainbow motif. The individual colours did not have particular references then; specific colours were added later as a chevron, one of which is for trans people, and now, as of 2021, a yellow triangle for intersex equality.
No doubt there will be more variations, and a challenge to maintain inclusivity. At some point, rather like the parade of letters – LGBTQQIP2SAA – it becomes impossible to keep up and veers into parody. Or worse, it becomes a fractious symbol for what’s omitted or priorized – like BIPOC, which places Black rather than Indigenous at the beginning and bunches People Of Colour together without a distinct letter for Asians – which itself would be disputed by, for instance, Pacific Islanders if it did.
Discords in the desire for harmony.