Since the U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in all states, people all over the world are celebrating Gay Pride by bannering rainbow flags across the streets during colorful parades and splashing rainbow colors all over the internet, CNN reports.
The use of these rainbow colors originated in 1976 by Vietnam War veteran, drag queen and artist, Gilbert Baker, who created the first rainbow flag as a symbol of pride and visibility.
"I thought, a flag is different than any other form of art. It's not a painting, it's not just cloth, it is not just a logo-it functions in so many different ways. I thought that we needed that kind of symbol, that we needed as a people something that everyone instantly understands." Baker told MoMa. "That influence really came to me when I decided that we should have a flag, that a flag fit us as a symbol, that we are a people, a tribe if you will."
Baker and his helpers created the flag with colorful stripes in an attic, inside the Gay Community Center in San Francisco by sewing fabrics of different rainbow colors soaked in dye.
The first rainbow flag was raised at the United Nations Plaza on June 25, 1978 in San Francisco and was widely spread as an international symbol for LGBT pride.
On June 26, 2015, SCOTUS legalized marriage between people of the same sex which led to a colorful celebration by millions of LGBTQ supporters across the world.
From New York to San Francisco, millions are celebrating the LGBT community https://t.co/GTvLW2T4k2 #PrideParade pic.twitter.com/1zLZgpXz19
— Mashable (@mashable) June 28, 2015
Facebook users joined the celebration of marriage equality by adding a rainbow filter on their profile pictures at the website's "Let's Celebrate Pride" page.
"I'm so happy for all of my friends and everyone in our community who can finally celebrate their love and be recognized as equal couples under the law," said the social media site's co-founder, Mark Zuckerberg on his post.
Google also painted its page with rainbow colors when users search for "gay pride," "LGBT," or "same sex marriage" results.
Twitter reported a total of 6.2 million (and counting) tweets being posted about this historical event, with users adding hashtags like #LoveWins or #Pride. The site also automatically adds rainbow emojis to tweets with these hashtags.
Rainbow-colored lights were also glowing at prominent buildings in the country, including the Empire State Building and the White House to celebrate American's win.
America should be very proud. #LoveWins pic.twitter.com/qH1OA1BV2j — The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 27, 2015
