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LGBQT Flags (Israel)

Last modified: 2024-04-20 by martin karner
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See also:


Agudah – National GLBT Association in Israel

image from agudah.israel-live.de

I located this flag (?) at agudah.israel-live.de. The symbol inside the flag is named Keshet Ga'Hava (Rainbow of pride). The site belongs to "Agudah – National GLBT Association in Israel". GLBT stand for "Gay Men, Lesbians, Bisexuals and Transgender".
I don't know if such flag really exist. There was a "pride parade" in Jerusalem a week ago but the only flags shown in the papers were the regular rainbows.
Dov Gutterman, 14 and 24 June 2003


Reported Gay Flags

image by Tomislav Todorovic

The Spanish newspaper El Mundo has published on its online edition today a picture of a gay flag with a white Star of David in the middle.
Esteban Rivera, 2 August 2009

The flag is also shown on a photo from Getty Images, which was published on Daylife website. As can be seen there, it was used at the annual Gay parade in Jerusalem in June 2009.
Tomislav Todorovic, 6 March 2010

image by Tomislav Todorovic, 6 July 2013

The flag variant with the red stripe at the top was used in New York City, at the New York Pride Parade 2010.
Tomislav Todorović, 6 July 2015

The flag is increasingly being used in Israel with purple at the top. A photo from Jerusalem Pride 2011 can be found here:
https://www.alamy.com/an-israeli-carries-a-rainbow-flag-before-the-annual-jerusalem-parade-for-gay-pride-and-tolerance-in-central-jerusalem-july-28-2011-upidebbie-hill-image257484007.html
and one from Jerusalem Pride 2015, here:
https://www.breakingisraelnews.com/72229/mayor-wont-attend-jerusalem-gay-pride-parade-religious-reasons/
while the photos from Jerusalem Pride 2016 can be viewed here:
https://forward.com/fast-forward/425533/dc-dyke-march-bans-jewish-pride-flag/
and here: https://www.jewishpress.com/indepth/opinions/the-pride-parade-what-are-they-proud-of/2019/07/11/

A photo published in 2016, without any information on place and time, but clearly taken in Israel (note the inscriptions in Hebrew on the buildings in background) is available here:
https://vosizneias.com/2016/05/17/jerusalem-israel-earmarks-extra-funds-for-lgbt-community-and-transgender-hostel/

Another photo, published in 2018, but certainly taken earlier (from the text, it is clear that it could not have been taken at Jerusalem Pride 2018, which was yet to take place several days later), can be seen here:
https://israelb.org/2018/07/road-closures-timetable-pride-parade-in-jerusalem-on-thursday/

Lastly, a video from Tel Aviv Pride 2016, available here: https://www.pond5.com/stock-footage/item/67418640-jewish-man-yarmulke-kippah-rainbow-flag-tel-aviv-israel displays two flags, one with red and the other with purple stripe at the top, being used jointly, thus revealing the design as another "no right side up" LGBT flag.
Tomislav Todorovic, 1 March 2020

image by Tomislav Todorovic

The rainbow flag with the national flag of Israel in canton, which was used at the Jerusalem gay pride parade on 2009-06-25, is shown here. The flag employs different shades of blue for the rainbow stripe and for the national flag. The shades of rainbow colors are the same as those on the rainbow flag with white Star of David. The aspect ratio of the flag is about 3:5 and that of the canton is the same as that of the stand-alone national flag, its width being half of the flag width.
Tomislav Todorovic, 5 April 2010

On today's online version of the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth, shows a variant of an Israeli gay flag (source: http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4240878,00.html)
Esteban Rivera, 20 June 2012

image by Tomislav Todorovic

The flag with rainbow-patterned Shield of David between two rainbow-patterned stripes, the Shield of David with violet/purple at the top and both stripes with red as the outermost color, is also known to have been originally used outside Israel (see here).
This flag has recently been introduced into Israel, too: Its photos from the Haifa Pride 2023 are available here and here.
Tomislav Todorovic, 15 October 2023

Gay Freedom Flag

Gay Freedom flag image located by William Garrison

A maroon or crimson flag with text on it. They appear to say "MY FREEDOM IS YOUR FREEDOM".

Source: https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/
Caption: Jerusalem Pride Parade 2021, (photo credit: Tzvi Joffre)
William Garrison, 19 August 2021

Israel Gay Youth (IGY)

Israel Gay Youth image located by Esteban Rivera
(source)

Logo
image located by Esteban Rivera
(source)

Israel Gay Youth (IGY) (Hebrew: ארגון נוער גאה, Irgun Noar Ge'eh, lit. "Proud Youth Organization"; Hebrew: איגי, Igy, "IGY") was founded in 2001 (and registered in 2004) in Israel as a non-profit NGO, branching off from the Israeli Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Association. It is a voluntary non-government organization originally established as a "Proud Youth Organization", but the abbreviation for the name in English, Israel Gay Youth (IGY), became popular (Sources: https://igy.org.il/en/about-2/ and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel_Gay_Youth).
Their slogan/campaign flags feature the organization's logo in white and maroon colors.

For additional information go to IGY (official website): https://igy.org.il

Esteban Rivera, 10 April 2024


Flag at Jerusalem Pride 2019

image by Tomislav Todorovic

At Jerusalem Pride 2019, a flag was seen which resembled the Jewish Rainbow Flags used outside Israel but differed from all of those designs described so far [1, 2]. Here, the blue stripes were reduced to innermost one-third of their original width, the rest of their original areas being covered with the rainbow patterns on which violet occupied the outermost position. The shade of blue (all areas) was lighter than in the national flag of Israel, as can be verified by comparing with the national flags as well as the rainbow flags which are visible in the other photos taken at the same event [2].

Sources:
[1] The Washington Times website: https://www.washingtontimes.com/multimedia/image/ap_israel_gay_pride_54078jpg
[2] Siouxland News website: https://siouxlandnews.com/news/nation-world/jerusalem-gay-pride-parade-draws-revelers-police
Tomislav Todorovic, 16 February 2021


Transgender flag

image by Tomislav Todorovic

In Israel, the flag of transgender people in prevailing use is green, with large black transgender symbol (U+26A7) in black. The symbol is sometimes painted by hand over an all-green flag. The mirror-image of the symbol, its two top "branches" being in reversed positions, appears sometimes as well. The examples of the flag use include:
- Tel Aviv Pride 2008 [1, 2]
- Jerusalem Pride 2009 [3]
- protests after the 2009 shooting in the Tel Aviv building of Agudah [4, 5, 6, 7]
- Tel Aviv Pride 2010 [8, 9]
- Tel Aviv Pride 2011 [10]
- Haifa Pride 2014 [11]
- protests after the homophobic attacks at the Jerusalem Pride 2015 [12]
- Haifa Pride 2017 [13]
- protests against the anti-trans violence in Tel Aviv in 2018 [14]
- Jerusalem Pride 2019 [15, 16]

The flag is not known to be used outside Israel.

Sources:
[1] Flickr - Photo from Tel Aviv Pride, on 2008-03-09: http://www.flickr.com/photos/nadjao/3631671315/
[2] Flickr - Photo from Tel Aviv Pride, on 2008-03-09: http://www.flickr.com/photos/nadjao/3632474870/
[3] Flickr - Photo from Jerusalem Pride, on 2009-06-26: http://www.flickr.com/photos/eyalkassirer/3662694192/
[4] Dreamstime photo archive - Photo from Tel Aviv protest rally on 2009-08-01: https://www.dreamstime.com/royalty-free-stock-images-shooting-tel-aviv-gay-bar-image10389569
[5] Dreamstime photo archive - Photo from Tel Aviv protest rally on 2009-08-01: https://www.dreamstime.com/royalty-free-stock-photography-shooting-tel-aviv-gay-bar-image10389827
[6] Dreamstime photo archive - Photo from Tel Aviv protest rally on 2009-08-01: https://www.dreamstime.com/stock-image-shooting-tel-aviv-gay-bar-image10389671
[7] Dreamstime photo archive - Photo from Tel Aviv protest rally on 2009-08-01: https://www.dreamstime.com/royalty-free-stock-photography-shooting-tel-aviv-gay-bar-image10389747
[8] Flickr - Photo from Tel Aviv Pride, on 2010-06-11: http://www.flickr.com/photos/7971992@N02/4691880242/
[9] Flickr - Photo from Tel Aviv Pride, on 2010-06-11: http://www.flickr.com/photos/igorzed/5866848598/
[10] Flickr - Photo from Tel Aviv Pride, on 2011-06-10: http://www.flickr.com/photos/liormania/5818112825/
[11] A Wider Bridge organization website - Report from Haifa Pride 2014: https://awiderbridge.org/lgbt-pride-in-haifa/
[12] The Times of Israel newspaper website - Photo from Jerusalem protest rally on 2015-08-01: https://www.timesofisrael.com/anti-violence-protests-to-be-held-across-israel/
[13] Deposit Photos photo archive - Photo from Haifa Pride, on 2017-06-30: https://depositphotos.com/158765048/stock-photo-haifa-11th-pride-parade-2017.html
[14] Wikimedia Commons - Photo from the protest rally in Florentin, Tel Aviv on 2018-07-22: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:LGBT_Potesting_in_Florentine,_south_Tel_Aviv_2.jpg
[15] A Wider Bridge organization website - Photos from the 2019 Pride events in Jerusalem and other Israeli cities:
https://awiderbridge.org/celebrating-40-lgbtq-prides-across-israel/
[16] A Wider Bridge organization at Facebook - Photo from Jerusalem Pride 2019: https://www.facebook.com/AWiderBridge/photos/a.356460234372536/2480612588623946/?type=3

Tomislav Todorovic, 1 August 2021


Gay flags used as protest flags

[gay protest flag]   [gay protest flag] images located by Esteban Rivera

Today several protesters "blockaded Israel's main airport and major highways on Tuesday as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's hard-right coalition pressed ahead with a justice bill that has opened the deepest splits seen in the country in decades.
A day after parliament passed a key element in the bill, which aims to curb the power of the Supreme Court, crowds of flag-waving protesters stopped morning traffic in major intersections and on highways nationwide. Some lay down on roads, while others threw flares." (source: reuters.com)

Image sources:
https://www.euronews.com...
https://twitter.com/Israel/status/1664310669255008256
https://www.reuters.com...
https://news3lv.com... (similar flag, on FOTW)

Esteban Rivera, 11 July 2023

This video displays a Rainbow Flag among numerous Israeli flags. This is the part of an increasing trend of Israeli use of sexual orientation flags as the political protest flags, such as the Jewish pink flag, which is used in Israel in that capacity. Other examples of the use of Rainbow Flag, as well as of the Monica Helms transgender flag may be found in the photos from the ongoing protests in Israel. That is a reaction to the policies of the current government which, while trying to present Israel as the only LGBT-friendly country in the region, also heavily relies on the LGBT-phobic political groupings, allowing them to freely spread hostility against the LGBT people.
This flag is presented here. Until now, its use was recorded outside Israel only, and as a sexual orientation flag exclusively.
Tomislav Todorovic, 12 July 2023

[Jewish gay pride flag] image by Tomislav Todorovic

Two flags used at the ongoing protests in israel, with the designs combining the Rainbow Flag and Israeli national flag, are presented here. Both flags were also used at the Jerusalem Pride 2023.
The flag with blue Shield of David between two rainbow patterns along the top and bottom edges is known to have been used outside Israel (see here > scroll down).
In 2023, it was also used at the Tel Aviv Pride and Haifa Pride. The color shades might differ somewhat, but the design is the same, so its use in Israel is verified now. Just like the flag with the rainbow field and white Shield of David (see here and here) it is also verified as used both in and outside Israel, but while that other flag was created in Israel and then spread abroad, this one was created outside Israel and introduced in it only recently.
Tomislav Todorovic, 21 September 2023

image located by William Garrison

The flag with blue Shield of David between two rainbow patterns along the top and bottom edges, displayed – not as protest flag – by a gay Israeli tanker near the Gaza Strip (ca. Oct. 26, 2023) (see also Jewish Gay Pride/Rainbow Flags). (source)
William Garrison, 17 November 2023

[Jewish gay pride flag] image by Tomislav Todorovic

The flag with rainbow-patterned Shield of David (scroll down) between two rainbow-patterned stripes, all patterns with red at the top, is also known to have been originally used outside Israel (image).
The earliest recorded use of this design in Israel was at the Jerusalem Pride 2018 [1], nearly two years after its earliest recorded use abroad. Its next recorded appearance was at the Tel Aviv Pride 2020 [2]. While there are currently no known records of its use in 2019–2022, it did appear again in 2023, first at the Jerusalem Pride [3] and then at the Pride events in Haifa [4–6] and Tel Aviv [7–12].

Sources:
[1] A Wider Bridge NGO at Facebook – Photo uploaded on 2018-08-03: https://www.facebook.com...
[2] +972 Magazine website: https://www.972mag.com...
[3] Shutterstock video archive – Video from Jerusalem Pride, on 2023-06-01: https://www.shutterstock.com...
[4] Flickr – Photo from Haifa Pride, on 2023-06-15: https://flickr.com...
[5] Dreamstime photo archive – Photo from Haifa Pride, on 2023-06-15: https://www.dreamstime.com...
[6] Wikimedia Commons – Photo from Haifa Pride, on 2023-06-15: https://upload.wikimedia.org...
[7] Money Control website – Report from Tel Aviv Pride 2023: https://www.moneycontrol.com... (image)
[8] Flickr – Photo from Tel Aviv Pride, on 2023-06-08: https://flickr.com...
[9] Dreamstime photo archive – Photo from Tel Aviv Pride, on 2023-06-08: https://www.dreamstime.com...
[10] Getty Images photo archive – Photo from Tel Aviv Pride, on 2023-06-08: https://www.gettyimages.co.uk...
[11] EPA Images photo archive – Photo from Tel Aviv Pride, on 2023-06-08: https://epaimages.com...
[12] EPA Images photo archive – Photo from Tel Aviv Pride, on 2023-06-08: https://epaimages.com...

Tomislav Todorovic, 7 October 2023


Flag at Jerusalem Pride 2023

A flag derived from the reported one from 2019 was seen at the Jerusalem Pride 2023. The basic design was modified by addition of a logo on each side of the Shield of David; while the logos are not completely visible, especially the one at the left-hand side, the photos seem to reveal enough details for the conclusion that they are identical – a narrow stripe in rainbow colors which forms the outline of a house at the left-hand side and serves as the underline for two rows of text in Hebrew at the right-hand side, the top row being in bold and the bottom one in regular or lightweight letters.

Sources:
[1] Alamy photo archive – Photo from Jerusalem Pride 2023
[2] Alamy photo archive – Photo from Jerusalem Pride 2023
[3] EPA Images photo archive – Photo from Jerusalem Pride 2023

Tomislav Todorovic, 20 September 2023


Israeli pink flag – Use as the LGBTQ symbol

[Israeli pink flag] image by Tomislav Todorovic, 25 July 2021

Israeli flag with blue areas repainted in pink, used as the protest flag, is presented at Pink protest flags. Outside Israel, this design is used as the sexual orientation symbol (see Jewish pink flag). Such use was recently introduced in Israel as well: numerous flags were used at the Haifa Pride 2023. There seems to be some variation regarding the shade of pink, and possibly the ratio as well.

Sources:
[1] Wikimedia Commons – Photo from Haifa Pride, on 2023-06-15
[2] Wikimedia Commons – Photo from Haifa Pride, on 2023-06-15
[3] Flickr – Photo from Haifa Pride, on 2023-06-15
[4] Flickr – Photo from Haifa Pride, on 2023-06-15
[5] Flickr – Photo from Haifa Pride, on 2023-06-15

Tomislav Todorovic, 18 November 2023