#peace flag

This is a photo I stole of the Peace flag. The church down the street put one out today (June 1) and I’m not sure why.

I used to go to this church, so I’m guessing it’s a muddled mess and everyone had a different opinion and finally the poor church admin just bought something random and moved on.

Russians opposed to the war have been using a new flag to symbolize Russia. However it has been used publicly mostly outside Russia by Russians in exile.

It turned out that other Russians, both in Russia and abroad, had come up with similar concepts for white and blue flags. The day before Kai posted their design, an art manager and PR specialist living in Russia suggested a white-blue-white flag on his Twitter account, Fish Sounds. (He asked to remain anonymous for security reasons.)

“Back in 2019, after getting into design and heraldry, I learned that the Russian flag violates the principles of vexillology and decided we needed a new one,” the Twitter user told Meduza. “I’ve been going to street protests since 2010 — and even back then, I could tell that Russian protesters lacked a common symbol. The current flag, the tricolor one, is used by both the Kremlin and the opposition, and after numerous wars, sports scandals, and multiple other unpleasant events, it’s lost its credibility. And the white ribbon (a symbol of Russia’s 2011-2012 protests) is long forgotten. So a new symbol, it seemed to me, was really needed.”

This flag, with just two colors and an uncomplicated design, is easy to replicate.

Another ideological feature the flag’s ambassadors cited is the ability to “replicate it under any conditions.” Kai Katonina told Meduza that a flag should be simple enough for anyone to sew or make with paper; that’s why it doesn’t have a single official shade of blue.

Despite the comment about not having an “official” shade of blue, the proponents use the word синий to describe the blue stripe in the middle. That usually refers to a medium to dark blue. Though that still leaves a lot of territory. As it appears in news reports, the blue on the peace flag often looks a little lighter than the blue on the current national Russian flag.

This photo showing almost a dozen white-blue-white flags was taken at an anti-Putin demonstration in Prague.

Some lovely fans with their flags tonight in Atlanta, Georgia. So wonderful to see the pride and safe spaces for your fellow LGBTQ+ peers in the venue!