Pride Month: the Leather Flag

The leather pride flag is a symbol used by the leather subculture since the 1990s. It was designed by Tony DeBlase, and was quickly embraced by the gay leather community. He first presented the design at International Mister Leather on May 28, 1989 and it has since become associated with leather in general and also with related groups such as the BDSM community.

In June 1989, the flag was used by the leather contingent in a Portland, Oregon pride parade, which was its first appearance at a pride parade.

On September 18, 1990, Clive Platman (Mr. Australia Drummer) presented Tony DeBlase with an Australian version of the flag, incorporating the southern cross, which is from the Australian national flag, with the original design of the leather pride flag.

On October 11, 1991, at the opening ceremonies of Living in Leather, a Canadian version of the leather pride flag was presented, which added to the original flag’s design a row of red maple leaves running horizontally through the white stripe.

Also in 1991, Melbourne Leather Men became the first club to incorporate the design elements of the leather pride flag into their club colors.

On December 12, 2000, NLA Florida presented a suggested pledge of allegiance to the leather pride flag at its holiday party in Fort Lauderdale, which reads, “I pledge allegiance to the Leather Pride flag, and the union of Leather people for which it stands, with safety, sanity and consent for all.”

For the 24th annual Folsom Street Fair, held September 30, 2007, the official poster artwork was a controversial photo featuring well-known LGBT and BDSM community members in festive and fetish attire including Sister Roma “as players in an innovative version of the culturally iconographic” The Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci, complete with table draped with the leather pride flag and “cluttered with sex toys, whips, and various (BDSM) restraints”. The image by FredAlert was used on the official event guide and produced as collector’s posters that were displayed throughout the city as advertising for the event.

In 2010 the leather pride flag’s creator Tony DeBlase was inducted into the Leather Hall of Fame.

Leather & Grace, a former organization of Unitarian Universalists who identified with the BDSM/kink community, was founded in 2011 by Desmond Ravenstone. Their logo combined a red flaming chalice with the stripes of the leather pride flag.

The San Francisco South of Market Leather History Alley consists of four works of art along Ringold Alley honoring leather culture; it opened in 2017. The four works of art are: engraved standing stones that honor community leather institutions including the Folsom Street Fair and leather pride flag pavement markings through which the stones emerge, a black granite stone etched with a narrative by Gayle Rubin, an image of the “Leather David” statue by Mike Caffee, and with a reproduction of Chuck Arnett’s 1962 mural that was in the Tool Box (a gay leather bar), and metal bootprints along the curb which honor 28 people who were an important part of the leather communities of San Francisco.

One of three original leather pride flags which the flag’s creator Tony DeBlase assembled as a prototype was donated to the Leather Archives & Museum. The Leather Archives & Museum also holds the papers of DeBlase.

Creator Tony DeBlase gave this explanation of the design:

The flag is composed of nine horizontal stripes of equal width. From the top and from the bottom, the stripes alternate black and royal blue. The central stripe is white. In the upper left quadrant of the flag is a large red heart. I will leave it to the viewer to interpret the colors and symbols.