YWCA Spokane

July is Disability Pride Month!

Disability Pride Month is a time to celebrate the identities, experiences, and contributions of disabled people.

Did you know the Disability Pride Flag has a story behind every color and design choice?

The original flag, designed by disabled artist Ann Magill, featured bold zigzag stripes to represent the barriers disabled people navigate every day. After feedback from the disability community that the high-contrast design could trigger symptoms for people with photosensitivity and other sensory conditions, Magill redesigned it into the accessible version we see today with muted colors and softened diagonal stripes.

Each color also carries meaning:
🖤 The faded black background represents the anger and mourning over the eugenics and the neglect that disabled people have had to fight against.
❤️ Red represents physical disabilities.
💛 Gold represents neurodiversity.
🤍 White represents invisible disabilities and disabilities that have not yet been diagnosed.
💙 Blue stands for emotional and psychiatric disabilities, including mental illness, anxiety, and depression.
💚 Green represents sensory disabilities, including deafness, blindness, lack of smell, lack of taste, auditory processing disorder, and other sensory disabilities.

Disability Pride Month is observed every July in honor of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), signed into law on July 26, 1990. This month is an opportunity to celebrate disability pride, advocate for accessibility and inclusion, and recognize the diversity and strength of the disability community.

Join the community July 25 at Riverfront Park in celebration of the ADA: https://my.spokanecity.org/riverfrontspokane/calendar/2026/07/25/bridging-communities-a-celebration-of-the-ada/

Happy Disability Pride Month!

Pictured is Opal Lee, known as the Grandmother of Juneteenth. After learning that enslaved people in Texas were not informed of their freedom until June 19, 1865—more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation—Lee dedicated much of her life to ensuring this history would not be forgotten. Her advocacy, education efforts, and cross-country walks helped build awareness of Juneteenth and contributed to its recognition as a federal holiday in 2021.

marks the day freedom reached those who had long been denied it—and reminds us how far we still must go. It is a day to honor the resilience, strength, and contributions of Black Americans while reflecting on the unfinished work of creating a more just and equitable society. As we commemorate this important chapter in our nation's history, we also reaffirm our commitment to advancing opportunity, belonging, and dignity for all.