Flags are about proclaiming power... that visibility is key to

The artist and activist Gilbert Baker, creator of the rainbow flag, once proclaimed with clarity and fire: “Flags are about proclaiming power... that visibility is key to our success and to our justice.” In this statement lies a truth that spans from the battlefields of empires to the marches of the oppressed: a flag is not merely cloth, but symbol, voice, and weapon. It waves to announce existence, to demand recognition, to declare that a people will not be erased. Baker, in giving the LGBTQ+ community its rainbow banner, drew upon this ancient power, knowing that visibility is the first step toward dignity and liberation.

To say “flags are about proclaiming power” is to remind us of their origin. Since the earliest days, banners have risen on hillsides and fortresses to announce who rules, who resists, who belongs. The Roman eagle, the medieval cross, the crescent moon—all flags were emblems of sovereignty and power. To plant a flag was to claim space, to assert presence, to defy invisibility. Baker saw this and understood: if those in power proclaim themselves with flags, then those denied power must raise their own, not as subjects but as equals.

His second truth is greater still: “visibility is key to our success and to our justice.” Injustice thrives in silence and in shadows. Those who are unseen are easily dismissed, those who are hidden are easily erased. But when a community dares to be visible—when it marches, when it sings, when it raises its flag high—it cannot be ignored. Visibility itself becomes resistance. The rainbow flag, bold and unmistakable, became not only a marker of identity but a rallying cry, declaring to the world: we are here, we are many, and we will not be hidden.

History offers countless mirrors. Recall the French Revolution, where the tricolor flag was raised as a symbol of liberty, equality, fraternity, replacing the banners of monarchy with the standard of the people. Recall the civil rights movement in America, where marchers carried signs and banners not only as demands, but as visible proof that they existed, that their voices could no longer be silenced. And in every colonized land, when the colonizer’s flag was lowered and the nation’s own was raised, the act itself was a proclamation of freedom. Baker, with his rainbow standard, joined this ancient chorus of symbols, declaring not conquest, but community.

The genius of Baker’s creation was in its universality. The rainbow itself is nature’s promise, a bridge between storm and sun, a symbol of diversity united in beauty. By turning it into a flag, he gave the LGBTQ+ movement a symbol not of secrecy, but of pride. And in raising it, people across the world found strength in visibility. For each time a rainbow flag is flown, it proclaims: we exist, we are strong, we are unashamed. In that proclamation lies both power and healing.

The lesson for us all is this: visibility is a form of power. Whatever your cause, whatever your struggle, to remain hidden is to surrender ground to those who would erase you. To step into the light, to raise your banner—be it a flag, a voice, or an act of truth—is to claim your place in the world. Do not underestimate the power of symbols; they speak in silence what words cannot, and they rally hearts in ways arguments alone never could.

Practically, this means: stand for your truth openly. If you belong to a community, raise its colors without fear. If you carry a cause, make it seen. Do not let shame or invisibility rob you of strength. Even if the world resists, visibility creates solidarity, and solidarity creates change. Just as Baker’s rainbow flag transformed the hidden into the visible, so too can your courage transform silence into justice.

So let Gilbert Baker’s words be remembered: a flag is not only cloth—it is a proclamation of power, and visibility is the foundation of justice. Raise your banner high, whatever it may be, for in the act of being seen lies the beginning of victory.