NEW colours will be in the council’s Pride flag this year.

Brighton and Hove City Council said the new colours will represent people of colour in the LGBTQ community.

A spokeswoman said: “We will be one of the first councils to fly the new inclusive Pride flag, designed to recognise that the modern LGBTQ movement began through the support of leadership of black trans women.

“The flag design reflects the appalling fact that trans, black and ethnic minority LGBTQ people experience higher rates of murder, other types of transphobia, homophobia and racism.”

The council says the flag is “more inclusive” and highlights the legacy of trans women activists.

They include Marsha P Johnson, an American gay liberation activist who was one of the prominent figures in the Stonewall uprising of 1969 and fellow activist, Silvia Rivera, who co-founded the political organisation STAR (Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries).

The spokeswoman added: “The transgender activists were among a group of black women and men who in the 1960s stood on the front lines of the LGBT liberation movement and they are now receiving overdue credit for her trailblazing role.

“The colourful design symbolises how everyone has many parts to their identity and that we should all work towards a world without prejudice and discrimination.

“In this city, LGBTQ and allies stand together.”

Brighton and Hove Pride, taking place this weekend, is recognised as one of the largest and most popular in the country.

This year marks 50 years since the Stonewall riots, a series of spontaneous demonstrations by members of the gay community against a police raid in New York City.

The council said this year “marks half a century of activism and achievements in the fight for equality and inclusion for LGBTQ people”.

Last year’s Pride event was attended by more than 400,000 people, with a similar turnout anticipated for this weekend.

Councillor Amanda Grimshaw, lead for equalities, said: “Relentless action and many brave individuals have forced the pace of change internationally, here in the UK, and more locally in our city – defying the entrenched positions of state and society to make things better.

“The struggle for equality continues and every achievement is hard won.

“Change has been achieved through communities recognising we have more in common than divides us.”