Rainbow flag (LGBT) in the context of "LGBTQ movements"

The United States involved with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people, as well as the LGBTQ social movements they have built.

Until the 20th century, it was uncommon for LGBTQ individuals to live open lives due to persecution and social ostracization. The nation's Protestant roots led to a heteronormative culture, reinforced through sodomy laws, often falsely attributed to Puritans. These laws began when King Henry VIII established himself as head of the Church of England. With this came The Buggery Act 1533. Before this, while the Catholic Church was known to prosecute sodomites from time to time, sodomy was considered a church issue secular courts had little interest in.

The LGBTQ community or queer community (also known by variants of the initialism LGBTQ) comprises LGBTQ individuals united by a common culture and social movements. These communities generally celebrate pride, diversity, individuality, and sexuality. LGBTQ activists and sociologists see LGBTQ community-building as a counterweight to heterosexism, homophobia, biphobia, transphobia, sexualism, and conformist pressures that exist in the larger society.

The term pride or sometimes gay pride expresses the LGBTQ community's identity and collective strength; pride parades provide both a prime example of the use and a demonstration of the general meaning of the term. The LGBTQ community is diverse in political affiliation. Not all LGBTQ people consider themselves part of the LGBTQ community.

LGBTQ culture or queer culture is the shared culture, experiences, values, and expressions of LGBTQ people, including lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer individuals. It may be referred to by other variants of the initialism LGBTQ, while the term gay culture can refer either to LGBTQ culture in general or specifically to homosexual culture.

LGBTQ culture varies widely by geography and the identity of the participants. Elements common to cultures of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex people include:

The bisexual flag, also called the bisexual pride flag, is a pride flag representing bisexuality, bisexual individuals and the bisexual community. According to Michael Page, the activist who created the flag based on a color palette designed by Liz Nania, the pink stripe represents attraction to the same sex, while the blue stripe represents attraction to the opposite sex. The purple stripe, the resulting "overlap" of the blue and pink stripes, represents attraction to both sexes.

Page designed the flag to increase the visibility of bisexuals among society as a whole and within the LGBTQ community. He aimed to give the bisexual community a symbol that is comparable to the rainbow flag for the greater LGBT community. The first bisexual pride flag was unveiled at the BiCafe's first anniversary party on December 5, 1998.

Gilbert Baker (June 2, 1951 – March 31, 2017) was an American artist, designer, activist, and vexillographer, best known as the creator of the rainbow flag.