Black triangle

For the UFO-like sightings, see Black triangles.

An inverted black triangle has two unrelated meanings:

In the UK, the inverted black triangle is used to indicate a medicine under intense scrutiny.

Otherwise, an inverted black triangle is a lesbian or feminist symbol of pride and solidarity. It originates from Nazi Germany, where it was one of a number of inverted triangle insignia used in concentration camps to designate different prisoner categories (see Nazi concentration camp badges). The black triangle denoted, as well as vagrants and Roma, women considered "anti-social" (i.e. a threat to Nazi family values) such as lesbians and prostitutes. As a symbol of lesbian pride it is considered the female counterpart to the pink triangle, which was a symbol for gay men. Today we see an inverted triangle often used as a lesbian or feminist symbol because the inversion represents fighting back against discrimination, as opposed to passive acceptance of "separate but equal" treatment. (The origin of the black inverted triangle is often misattributed as a symbol for the pudendum or vagina.)

See also

• History of gays during the Holocaust
• rainbow flag

External links

• Brief description of the UK black triangle scheme for medicines under intense surveillance.
• A short explanation of the origin of pink and other queer triangles

Summary of the Black Triangle UFO phenomenon from Space.Com