Facebook Paints a Rainbow for Gay Pride

mashable.co.uk

In case you missed it, on Friday the US supreme court ruled that same-sex marriage would be recognised and carried out all across the nation. This is a massive achievement for the States, and will surely go down in history as one of the most important civil rights victories of the decade, if not the century. 

Across the world, politicians, celebrities, journalists and everyone else have been expressing their delight at the result. Hundreds of articles have been published, #SCOTUSMarriage and #:LoveWins have been trending heavily on Twitter and if you've been active on Facebook in any capacity over the weekend, there's a good chance your feed looked a bit like this:

wikihow.com

All across the world, Facebook succumbed to rainbow fever as millions of users added a rainbow overlay to their profile pictures to celebrate the historic ruling. Facebook themselves introduced the 'Celebrate Pride' tool to make the process easier, allowing you to first view of preview of your edited profile picture and then apply it. The White House profile was one of the first to make the change, only minutes after the decision went public. Later that night rainbow colours were projected across the building for real as people celebrated just outside. Elsewhere Niagra Falls, the Empire State Building and the Disney Castle were all also lit the same way.

This is, of course, a reference to the rainbow flag, a universally recognised symbol of gay pride. Facebook users were joined by dozens of big name brands who came out in support and celebration of the decision, daubing their well-known wares in the colours. Examples include Absolut, Google, Tumblr, Starbucks and even HBO, who posted an image of a Renly Baratheon doll in front of the flag, being that he's one of the more prominent gay characters in Game of Thrones. Actress Janet Varney also posted a touching piece of fan art from Nickelodeon's Legend of Korra, depicting the two main characters who entered into a lesbian relationship in the show's finale (a landmark moment for animated television in and of itself). My favorite though? Arnold Goddamn Schwarzenegger. 

pinknews.co.uk

The response wasn't totally, universally jovial. Several republican candidates came out in opposition of the decision, most notably Mick Huckabee, and despite talk of the issue being revisited by the Australian cabinet, prime minister Tony Abbot reasserted his opposition to marriage equality. On social media the usual hate bubbled from the usual sources, but nowhere near enough for anyone to take any serious notice. Amusingly, a spate of homophobic US citizens took to Twitter to pledge their intentions to move to Canada and I really hope they go through with it, at which point they'll probably find out that gay marriage has been legal in Canada since 2005. 

Perhaps the best rebuttal came from film director Rian Johnson though. After tweeting an image of Darth Vader hoisting the flag, the future writer/director of Star Wars Episode VIII was told by one 'fan' that the Sith lord would have never supported same-sex marriage. In response, Johnson... Well, see for yourself:

.@chasadavis pic.twitter.com/41PyFQKL0f

— Rian Johnson (@rianjohnson) June 26, 2015

Owned.

Callum Davies

Callum is a film school graduate who is now making a name for himself as a journalist and content writer. His vices include flat whites and 90s hip-hop. Follow him @CallumAtSMF

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