For the 25th anniversary of the flag in 2003, Baker advocated for people to use his original eight-color design. These variations often aim to better represent the diversity and struggles faced by the LBGTQIA+ community, such as the Philadelphia Pride flag and the Progress Pride flag.Gilbert Baker also created variations of his own design. While the six-color design continues to be the most popular symbol of the LBGTQIA+ community, it has inspired many variations. This created the six-color version that became the most prevalent symbol of the LBGTQIA+ community for years to come, replacing several other symbols including the Greek Lambda and a pink triangle. Later that same year, Indigo and turquoise would be combined into a royal blue.
By 1979, hot pink would be phased out due to fabric unavailability. Hot pink represented sexuality, red represented life, orange represented healing, yellow represented sunlight, green represented nature, turquoise represented art, indigo represented harmony, and violet represented spirit. The original Gay Pride flag featured eight colors, each with its own meaning assigned by Baker.
