Does the equal sign (=) have any symbolic relevance outside of mathematics?

I ask because I have come across 3 separate people wearing or sporting this sign within the last month, and I'm curious to know if it has any other meaning that I'm not aware of..

The first man I saw had this patch sewn onto the left side of his shirt.... a solid black circle, with yellow equal sign within..

The second was a man who obviously had made this shirt himself, this time was a large black square with yellow equal sign in the middle.

And the third, was a bumper sticker on a car that I was driving behind this evening... again, a black square with bright yellow equal sign ( = ) in the middle of the block.

(There are also a couple of members on ATS who have this sign as an avatar, I've noticed...)

Is there a deeper meaning behind this symbol?
Are they only mathematicians, simply someone interested in the sciences, or something more?

Does anyone know if what this could be about? (if anything)

Originally posted by OuttaHere
This person had the same (or a very similar question):
Equals sign

And this seems to be the answer:
answer

It is a symbol created by the HRC, (Human Rights Campaign), an organization working to advance civil equality and personal liberty for the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered community. The equal sign (=), symbolizes human rights and is often cited as a token for the ongoing struggle and persecution the LGBTQ community still face.

edit on 9-6-2012 by OuttaHere because: (no reason given)

Your question was answered in the other thread that you posted.

Please don't duplicate threads, it clutters up the new topics board.

Originally posted by watchitburn

Originally posted by OuttaHere
This person had the same (or a very similar question):
Equals sign

And this seems to be the answer:
answer

It is a symbol created by the HRC, (Human Rights Campaign), an organization working to advance civil equality and personal liberty for the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered community. The equal sign (=), symbolizes human rights and is often cited as a token for the ongoing struggle and persecution the LGBTQ community still face.

edit on 9-6-2012 by OuttaHere because: (no reason given)

Your question was answered in the other thread that you posted.

Please don't duplicate threads, it clutters up the new topics board.

Hi Watchitburn,

I'm sorry, but I made a mistake and added the thread into the wrong category.. I wasn't sure how to delete the it (there was no option) so I created another in the correct category.

If you know how I can get this one deleted, please let me know!

reply to post by Isabelx

Closest I can find is yellow equal sign on a blue background.
answers.yahoo.com...

Apparently from the Human Rights Campaign.

Working for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Equal Rights

Is it helpful?

reply to post by Isabelx

If you hit "alert" somewhere on this thread or one of the posts and request deletion, it will come to the attention of Staff. Good luck!

ETA Only Staff (Mods and Admins) can delete threads. Once created, a thread cannot be deleted, even by the user that created it.

reply to post by Isabelx


No worries,

If your thread ends up in the wrong forum, you can private message a moderator and ask them to relocate it for you.

Generally that isn't necessary though, the Mods usually notice it and will move it for you, they will also send you a message informing you that they moved it and why.

Don't know why people are wearing it, but I can say that as far as hermeticism goes, the equals sign could represent a kind of mirror, or reflection. Could also represent the concept of "as above, so below".

Here's a wiki entry

en.wikipedia.org...

The etymology of the word equal is from the Latin word aequalis, meaning "uniform, identical, or equal," from aequus "level, even, just."

The "=" symbol that is now universally accepted by mathematics for equality was first recorded by Welsh mathematician Robert Recorde in The Whetstone of Witte (1557). The original form of the symbol was much wider than the present form. In his book Recorde explains his design of the "Gemowe lines" (meaning twin lines, from the Latin gemini):

According to Scotland's University of St Andrews History of Mathematics website:[2]
The symbol '=' was not immediately popular. The symbol || was used by some and æ (or œ), from the Latin word aequalis meaning equal, was widely used into the 1700s.

To me it also sort of resembles the astrological symbol for Aquarius which is supposed to represent movement .

reply to post by pirhanna

Could also represent the concept of "as above, so below".

That concept is represented in the Lorraine cross

en.wikipedia.org...

Hermetic alchemists of the Renaissance used the emblem as a symbol of earth and spirit by combining the square earth cross with the cross of Christ. When drawn symmetrically, it symbolised the hermetic maxim, "As above, so below".

Originally posted by LightSpeedDriver
reply to post by Isabelx

 

Closest I can find is yellow equal sign on a blue background.
answers.yahoo.com...

Apparently from the Human Rights Campaign.

Working for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Equal Rights

Is it helpful?

That was very helpful, LightSpeedDriver, thank you.. that's most likely what it was, even though the backgrounds were slightly different. I did a search on this, and someone else said that they saw it with a purple background, so perhaps the background colors could even be versatile at times?

Thank you also for sharing with me how to get a thread deleted... I'll remember

reply to post by Isabelx

You are more than welcome. As for colour differences, it could be just that. Every monitor and screen are slightly different so it could be a calibration thing. I suppose dark blue could appear purple or black depending on the circumstances or perhaps the organisation changes the colour to signify different things.

Peace

reply to post by Isabelx


Hmm, I’ve often seen it and wondered too. Thanks for posting, now I know, and knowing is half the battle. S&F

Originally posted by Isabelx
I ask because I have come across 3 separate people wearing or sporting this sign within the last month, and I'm curious to know if it has any other meaning that I'm not aware of..

The first man I saw had this patch sewn onto the left side of his shirt.... a solid black circle, with yellow equal sign within..

The second was a man who obviously had made this shirt himself, this time was a large black square with yellow equal sign in the middle.

And the third, was a bumper sticker on a car that I was driving behind this evening... again, a black square with bright yellow equal sign ( = ) in the middle of the block.

(There are also a couple of members on ATS who have this sign as an avatar, I've noticed...)

Is there a deeper meaning behind this symbol?
Are they only mathematicians, simply someone interested in the sciences, or something more?

Does anyone know if what this could be about? (if anything)

edit on 9-6-2012 by Isabelx because: (no reason given)

I think those who are supportive of gay marriage and gay rights are using it to represent "equality" for their cause. That's probably the case with the guy wearing the shirt and the bumper sticker. I have several friends who have used it in that context. If there is another popular use in today's "culture", I'm not aware of it at the moment.

ETA: sorry, I see that it was answered by other posters after I read additional posts.