Pomosexual Pride Flag
Identity Pride Flag ·
A pride flag for pomosexual identity, representing people who reject or do not fit sexual orientation labels. The term was coined in 1997 by Carol Queen and Lawrence Schimel in their book 'PoMoSexuals: Challenging Assumptions About Gender and Sexuality.' The flag, featuring shades of pink and white, was created by the Tumblr blog pride-color-schemes on July 5, 2016. The color meanings were never specified by the creator.
Key facts
- Designer
- pride-color-schemes (Tumblr)
- Created
- First documented public use
- In use
- 2016-present
- Aspect Ratio
- 3:5 · standard
- Stripes
- 7
- Represented Identity
- pomosexual
Also known as
- Labeln't Pride Flag
- pomosexual
- pomo
- labeln't
Status Proposed
Archive categories Sexuality Pride Flags
Overview
To provide a visual symbol for people who reject or do not fit sexual orientation labels.
The term 'pomosexual' was introduced in the 1997 anthology 'PoMoSexuals: Challenging Assumptions About Gender and Sexuality,' edited by Carol Queen and Lawrence Schimel. The book argued that postmodern sexuality cannot be appreciated without understanding its roots in the LGBTQ+ community, while acknowledging that not all individuals fit into existing orientation labels. The flag was created nearly two decades later on Tumblr. [1][2]
Identity & Context
- Represented Identity
- pomosexual
- Movement
- Postmodern sexuality / label-rejection
The 1997 book draws parallels to the postmodernism art movement, arguing that the 'neatly organized' sexual orientation labels within the LGBTQ+ community fit some but not all individuals. [2]
Creators
The Creator
Unknown
Designer
The original designer of the pomosexual pride flag is unknown. The pomosexual concept itself originates in the 1997 anthology PoMoSexuals: Challenging Assumptions About Gender and Sexuality, edited by Carol Queen and Lawrence Schimel. The flag is a later community creation that has not been traced to a specific designer.
Attribution notes
The flag was created by the Tumblr blog pride-color-schemes on July 5, 2016. An earlier flag for the -pomo prefix was posted on DeviantArt by user Pride-Flags on August 22, 2015. A separate pomosexual flag was posted on January 26, 2017, designed by lgbtrainbowdolls. [1][3]
Origin
- Specific Place
- Tumblr (pride-color-schemes)
- Place Type
- blog
- Digital Origin
- true
Digital origin; no verified physical location.
Created on Tumblr by pride-color-schemes on July 5, 2016. [1]
Dates & Chronology
- Year Created
- Exact date
- First public use
- Period in Use
- 2016-present
Limited adoption. The identity and flag circulate primarily in online Queer spaces, wikis, and flag directories. [1]
Pomosexual Pride Day is observed on October 10. [4]
Lineage
- Indirect influences
- Rainbow Pride Flag
- Related flags
- Queer Pride Flag, Unlabeled Pride Flag
Conceptually related to the broader Queer pride flag as both represent label-resistant identities. Pomosexuality specifically rejects categorization, while Queer reclaims it as an umbrella.
Colors & Symbolism
The flag uses shades of pink and white. The specific meanings of the colors were never specified by the creator. [1][3]
| Colour | Hex | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Pink | #E893B2 | Outer band of the pink-to-white gradient. The pride-color-schemes 2016 design used multiple shades of pink with no per-stripe meanings published by the creator. |
| Light pink | #F4B6C2 | Lighter inner pink. No creator-issued meaning published. |
| White | #FFFFFF | Inner white band. No creator-issued meaning published. |
| Green | — | Center green stripe. The single green stripe distinguishes this design from a pure pink-to-white gradient. No creator-issued meaning published. |
| White | #FFFFFF | Mirror of position 3. |
| Light pink | #F4B6C2 | Mirror of position 2. |
| Pink | #E893B2 | Mirror of position 1. |
Approximated from circulating images. Not creator-issued.
This flag has no official digital palette. Color values shown are approximate.
The pomosexual flag was created by Tumblr user pride-color-schemes in July 2016 as a seven-stripe symmetrical design. The creator did not publish stripe meanings, which is consistent with the pomosexual concept itself, a postmodern refusal of fixed sexual orientation labels coined by Carol Queen and Lawrence Schimel in their 1997 anthology PoMoSexuals.
No creator-issued hex codes have been documented. The flag uses shades of pink and white. The approximated values given are sampled from circulating images and should be verified from the original Tumblr post.
Design
- Aspect Ratio
- 3:5 · standard
- Orientation
- horizontal
- Stripe Count
- 7
- Layout
- horizontal stripes
- Stripes (Top → Bottom)
- Pink, Light Pink, White, Green, White, Light Pink, Pink
Uses shades of pink and white. Exact stripe count and arrangement are unverified pending the original Tumblr post. [1]
A horizontal striped flag in shades of pink and white.
Usage & Adoption
- First Users
- Online Queer communities
- Online Usage
- Tumblr, LGBTQIA+ identity wikis
- Event Usage
- Pomosexual Pride Day (October 10) [4]
- Current Status
- active
Limited adoption. The concept has more academic traction than the flag itself.
Discourse & Debates
- Whether 'pomosexual' is best understood as a discrete identity (with its own flag, day, and community) or as a critical stance on the necessity of identity categories at all. Carol Queen and Lawrence Schimel's 1997 collection PoMoSexuals: Challenging Assumptions About Gender and Sexuality used the term in the second sense. The contemporary Tumblr-era flag use leans toward the first.
- Some community uses overlap with 'queer,' 'unlabeled,' and 'questioning,' which raises the question of whether the term is doing distinct work today or whether its current presence on flag wikis is mainly archival.
Criticisms
- Carol Queen and Lawrence Schimel coined 'pomosexual' in 1997 as an explicitly anti-label gesture, naming the experience of being unable or unwilling to fit existing sexual-orientation categories. A pride flag for an anti-label position is contradictory on its face.
Pomosexual can describe someone who actively rejects labels, has an aversion to labels, or simply does not fit existing sexual orientation categories. The romantic counterpart is pomoromantic. [1]
Footnotes & Citations
Sources and footnotes 5 sources
- 1. Pomosexual. LGBTQIA+ Wiki. Accessed 2026-03-31
- 3. Pomosexual. LGBTQIA+ Wiki (Fandom). Accessed 2026-03-31
- 4. Pomosexual Pride Day (October 10). Anya Korolyov. Medium. Accessed 2026-03-31
- Rainbow flag (LGBTQ). Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia (2026-06-25). Accessed 2026-07-24
Books
- 2. PoMoSexuals: Challenging Assumptions About Gender and Sexuality. Carol Queen and Lawrence Schimel (editors). Cleis Press (1997) [no stable URL]
Image Sources
- Rendering
- pride-color-schemes 2016 version