Episcopal Church Unveils New LGBTQIA+ Shield Logo In Celebration Of Pride Month

The following report is a press release from The Episcopal Church, on May 16th:

In affirmation and celebration of The Episcopal Church’s LGBTQ+ members, the Office of Communication is pleased to unveil a new Pride shield available online for churchwide use.

The design retains the upper-left blue corner of The Episcopal Church’s shield logo and incorporates elements of the traditional Pride flag as well as the Progress Pride flag and Philadelphia Pride flag. In their use of black, brown, pink, and light-blue diagonal lines, the latter two flags represent intersectional progress in acknowledging people who are often overlooked by the mainstream LGBTQ+ movement: communities of color; the transgender community; and the many thousands harmed by anti-LGBTQ+ policy—from those who lost their lives in the AIDS crisis of the 1980s and ‘90s, to those still disproportionately impacted today.

As a longtime ally of LGBTQ+ people, I was so excited to work on this Pride shield for The Episcopal Church. I hope many more people feel seen and included by this new graphic as we enter Pride month.

said Melissa Walker, senior graphic designer

For half a century, Episcopalians have been working toward a greater understanding and radical inclusion of all God’s children. Resolutions from General Convention in 1976 recognized LGBTQ+ people as children of God with an equal claim to the pastoral care of the church and equal protection under the law. In 1994, General Convention amended the church’s canons to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation, providing equal access to the rites and worship of the church, including ordination. In 2015, General Convention voted to amend the canons that regulate marriage, permitting any couple the rite of holy matrimony.