The red represents the Great Fire of Atlanta in 1917. It also honors those killed in the Atlanta Race Riots and the city’s subsequent role in the Civil Rights Movement. The bright blue represents the Chattahoochee River. It’s also a symbol for the cleanliness, strength, dependability and coolness of this great city.
The two white stars represent the two counties of Atlanta (Fulton and DeKalb); and the points of the stars represent the twelve council districts of Atlanta. The white stripes represent important moments in history. The white stripes represents the building of the Western Atlantic Railroad ~ giving rise to the settlement that became Atlanta. And lastly, the middle yellow stripe is for the International Expo which was responsible for the growth and development of Atlanta. I chose yellow because its the color of happiness, optimism, enlightenment, creativity and sunshine. The stripes are placed vertically adopting the horizontal orientation for Resurgens (latin for “rising again”), which is also the inspiration for this flag’s name.