Four colourful flags now fly outside Victorian government offices at 1 Treasury Place.
Premier Daniel Andrews revealed that a transgender flag was raised on Tuesday in support of the trans community after an anti-trans-rights rally was held on the steps of Parliament House on Saturday and attended by neo-Nazis.
Four LGBTQ flags have been raised outside state government offices.Credit: Justin McManus
“We saw symbols of hate on the steps of the parliament … We thought it was the right thing to do to have some symbols of love, respect, inclusion and safety now at the front of the centre of government,” Andrews said on Wednesday.
The blue, pink and white flag now flies next to two progress pride flags and a rainbow pride flag on four previously vacant flagpoles. The Australian, Victorian, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags remain permanently flying on the government building, just down from Parliament House on Spring Street.
Andrews said the trans flag will fly at Treasury Place until March 31, the International Transgender Day of Visibility. The progress pride flag will remain a permanent fixture, while the well-known rainbow pride flag will be raised on special occasions, such as Pride Month, he said.
Austin Fabry-Jenkins, co-convener of the Victorian Pride Lobby, says the pink and blue colours of the trans flag reference the traditional gendered colours often assigned to women and men.
“The blue and pink is a reclaiming of those colours that are kind of ascribed to us against our will as children, and the white represents all gender identities beyond the binary. So, that would be nonbinary people, gender-fluid people and agender people,” they said.
US trans activist Monica Helms, who later founded the Transgender American Veterans Association, created the trans flag in 1999.
Michelle McNamara, Transgender Victoria’s treasurer, said the flag’s horizontally striped, symmetrical design meant it couldn’t be flown upside down, which is often seen as a symbol of distress. Its creator instead wanted it to be an inclusive and proud symbol, she said.
“It’s quite an important thing for our community to be recognised and be visible. Often transgender people are quite invisible and may choose on many occasions to remain so for their safety. We witnessed the nasty demonstration … It was truly, truly horrible, and many trans and gender diverse people are fearful for their safety,” McNamara said.
The transgender flag outside Treasury Place on Wednesday.Credit: Justin McManus
McNamara said the International Transgender Day of Visibility is a celebration of trans people, in contrast to the sombre Transgender Day of Remembrance on November 20, which commemorates victims of anti-trans violence.
A world-first inquiry into LGBTQ hate crimes is currently underway in NSW and is examining dozens of deaths. A report found at least 32 transgender and gender-nonconforming people had been killed in the United States in 2022 by mid-November. In Australia, almost one in two trans young people had attempted suicide according to a 2017 survey – a rate 20 times the national average.
The progress pride flag – which will permanently fly on Spring Street near the Treasury building – incorporates the trans flag colours and shades of brown and black in a triangular pattern atop the edge of the rainbow pride flag.
“[It’s] meant to incorporate the entire LGBTIQA+ community, and also specifically represent people of colour within our community and anti-racism,” Fabry-Jenkins said.
The progress pride flag outside the Victorian government building near Spring Street.Credit: Justin McManus
Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas said the trans flag addition was “quite a small thing that we can do, but it’s a very powerful thing”.
Georgie Crozier, state Liberal leader in the upper house, declined to comment on the flying of the trans flag, other than to say it was a “matter for the government”.
Victorian Greens leader Samantha Ratnam welcomed the flag after Saturday’s protests.
City of Melbourne deputy mayor Nicholas Reece said on 3AW the city’s town hall was lit up in the trans flag colours on Tuesday night to show support for Melbourne’s trans community.
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clarification
An earlier version of this article said the fourth flag alongside the transgender and two progress pride flags was a “traditional” rainbow pride flag. However, this flag also includes brown and black colours alongside the traditional rainbow pattern to represent gay people of colour.