Has the Rainbow been rescued from mermaids and wokies by children showing support for the NHS?

[stumbledin]

When I first saw pictures of children's posters in windows of Rainbows for the NHS I had a negative reaction, ie in my mind it had become associated with woke transactivists and all the madness behind it.

But now I am thinking, not just good to support the NHS but when there is a shared purpose, people can quite easily shrug off the thought police who have tried to capture so much of our lives and how we express it.

Or does this just mean that for the very young rainbows are magic and princesses and unicorns are on duty in the NHS and if you want to change your sex wishes come true?

I'm in agreement with you OP. I really didn't like the way gender and other political activists "took over" the rainbow and made it theirs. It was annoying for this poster anyway to see it everywhere - to see it on M&S bags, police uniforms, waving as flags outside churches, and so forth.

Rainbows are associated with beauty and universal human hope and joy. Should never have been hijacked for "gender wars" purposes. I truly hope it goes back to its former meanings.

I was one of the people who recoiled are the idea of seeing the rainbow everywhere, as it had well and truly been appropriated. (Am obviously ignoring the bear of little thought that translates this as an invite to paedos knocking one your door ). However, I was thinking exactly the same as the op yesterday - this might actually be a way to wrest control of the imagery back. So I’ve gone from not wanting it to be used, to wanting to display one myself, and to hope that it is used even more ubiquitously with a far wider context to make absolutely crystal clear that the rainbow can’t be commandeered by the woke any more.

This has also made me realise that the lgbt/pride rainbows are rarely actual rainbows in a semicircular(ish) shape - they are often a straight block or flag of the rainbow spectrum of colours. Ifs Beerbohm nice to see rainbows actually mean the arched rainbows, maybe with fluffy clouds again!

🌈 ☘️Excuse me but I think you'll find that leprechauns own the rainbow ☘️🌈

There has been a quite a few new posters on FWR using regular names but changing one letter.

Bit childish.

Yes, its lovely to see de politicised rainbows back being what they were in the first place.

Daten, are you aware your username is just one letter different from one of FWR’s most esteemed contributors, or is it just an extraordinary coincidence?

Datun asked Daten to namechange yesterday & they agreed, so hopefully they’ll get round to it soon.

Well I am glad I did sunday school, all my life I thought God gave us the rainbow as a sign of hope, just checked and yep he did it first.

8 Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him: 9 “I now establish my covenant with you and with your descendants after you 10 and with every living creature that was with you—the birds, the livestock and all the wild animals, all those that came out of the ark with you—every living creature on earth. 11 I establish my covenant with you: Never again will all life be destroyed by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth.”

12 And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: 13 I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. 14 Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, 15 I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. 16 Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.”

Rainbows are associated with lots of things:
Christians
LGBT
NHS
Wizard of Oz
Pots of gold.
Leprechauns.

Generally a rainbow is a pretty thing that brings joy.

Physics lessons...

(I had to try to explain to my middle one why a bubble makes a rainbow shadow )

Rainbows say Greenpeace and Save the Whale to me.

I'm really pleased that rainbows now mean hope again not a sign someone has had woke brainwashing.

Was having a conversation about this recently!

It's a bit like the Union Jack isn't it? A national flag that was taken by the skinheads and BNP to be theirs, to the extent few others would use it because of the association it now had in many people's minds. Then somehow, it become fashionable. It was on the roof of new Minis and on shoulder bags, bedding, rugs, shoes - you name it, 'fashion' took it over and totally diluted the baggage it had picked up.

I do wonder if it will be the same with rainbows. It will be associated with multiple things again (I'd forgotten Greenpeace's Rainbow Warrior ). I think that's a good thing.

(I'd forgotten Greenpeace's Rainbow Warrior grin)

Yeah, when I joined Greenpeace as a teenager, I was sent a rainbow window sticker in the joining pack. I never actually stuck it anywhere, I kept it reverently in my special treasures box.

It didn't need rescuing. Rainbows in all their multiple glory have different meanings to different groups/people.

I never thought that woke mermaids owned rainbows but it has been appropriated by them and so has come to signal a certain brand of politics - or would that be colonisation!

Didnt know that about the violet - which of course is correct violet (or at least lavender / the lavender menace) as it is the colour of lesbians - ie biological women who are sexually attracted to other biological women.

As far as I’m aware Mermaids just looked to use the mermaid symbol (and even that seems to have been watered down recently with their new branding) - I don’t think they ever looked to “claim” it? It’s generally used as a symbol for the wider LGBT community (predating Mermaids) and seen everywhere during Pride, with many organisations and brands employing it.

I think people are being disingenuous sayings its associated with lots of different things. The rainbow was completely annexed by those pursuing sexual politics in a completely in-yer-face liberal-intolerant way; nothing like the past. It makes me cringe to see a beautiful and universal symbol being crassly and cynically used in this way.

Well not disingenuous, many people had no idea that mermaids existed or used the rainbow. Not everyone is mumsnet educated you know.

I knew it from Sunday school, others from the Wizard of Oz, some from zippy, bungle and george.

The rainbow was used initially to celebrate the diversity of the LGB community and was used by businesses to show they were LGB friendly. It has in very recent years been tokenised by some businesses wanting to be seen as liberal and accepting.
But initially it literally meant, you can come into this cafe or bar and it will be safe.
And comparing the LGB community to skinheads and EDL??
A lot of you don't understand what you are trying to critique.

I am happy to see the rainbow used to mean something good.

A few years ago, in Christian circles, the rainbow was used as a symbol that God keeps his promises.

It feels right that the balance is redressed and no one group or collection of people can claim it.

When I see some of these rubbish black and brown rainbows in suburban windows, I am reminded of a quote from David Sedaris:

Our parents did not hang our drawings on the wall because they recognised them for what they were.

I am starting to hope for some Rainbow Police, or Rainbow PCSOs at any rate, who will knock on doors and order the removal of anything that does not conform to the ROYGBIV Standard.

I am pleased with the depoliticisation (sp) of the rainbow, too.

When I was a kid in the 70s Rainbows had nothing to do with sexuality or sexual preferences. It was a Christian symbol or a hippyish symbol. I do think it was appropriated and everything rainbow coloured HAD to mean you agreed with gender ideology and born in the wrong body nonsense and the chemical castration of children.

@2Rebecca From at least the 80s it has also been used to represent the diversity of the LGB community.
Sorry if you would have preferred that community to remain invisible.