Trans activists say restoring traditional Pride flag at Stonewall isn’t enough

Thousands of protesters gathered outside of the iconic Stonewall Inn on a near-freezing night last week to re-raise the rainbow Pride flag in defiance of the Trump administration, which had unceremoniously ordered its removal days earlier.

It was meant to be a joyous occasion, an act of protest for the New York City LGBTQ+ community, but trans activists in the crowd were deeply disappointed by what they say was exclusion of their community in choosing to raise the historic rainbow Pride flag instead of the newer, inclusive Progress pride flag.

The debacle began 9 February when passersby realized the rainbow Pride flag that once flew at the Stonewall Inn national monument, which commemorates the landmark 1969 queer rights uprising, had been removed.

“I literally had a friend send me a little video. Somebody then reported it to the Gay City News and the word got out quickly,” said Charley Beale, president of the Gilbert Baker Foundation, named for the designer of the original 1978 flag. The foundation has been monitoring the Trump administration’s attempts to remove Pride flags around the country.

The rainbow flag had been removed with no notice and replaced with an American flag.

This removal was justified by a Trump administration memo from January restricting which flags can fly at national parks and historic sites.

The interior department said in a statement to the Guardian earlier this month that “the policy governing flag displays on federal property has been in place for decades. Recent guidance clarifies how that longstanding policy is applied consistently across NPS-managed sites.” It added that, “Stonewall National Monument continues to preserve and interpret the site’s historic significance through exhibits and programs.”

This wasn’t the first attempt by the Trump administration to obfuscate the history and meaning of the Stonewall Inn, which was designated as a national monument under the Obama administration in 2016. After Trump’s inauguration earlier this year, the National Park Service stopped flying the Progress Pride flag, which includes both the colors of the trans flag and black and brown stripes in recognition of queer people of color. The NPS later replaced that flag with the more traditional rainbow flag, which is what was removed most recently.

The administration also removed references to transgender people from the Stonewall monument’s website – effectively erasing history, given that Black trans women led the queer rights uprising that the monument commemorates.

These moves come as the Trump administration has passed a series of anti-transgender executive orders, including one declaring that the government would only recognize sex assigned at birth.

The New York City LGBTQ+ community has responded to the administration’s actions with multi-day protests outside of the Stonewall Inn, which culminated on 12 February when Democratic lawmakers re-raised the same Pride flag design that had been taken down.

Still, some activists were deeply disappointed that the lawmakers chose to only restore the traditional flag – instead of restoring the Progress flag that was taken down in early February.

It’s a “half measure”, said Chloe Elentári, a trans woman and activist who was at the protests. “I want the progress flag so that we’re all included.”

Trans activist and playwright Mika Kauffman, said “I was there when they were raising the flag,” and added: “It just felt extremely performative because it wasn’t an inclusive pride flag. Like, where are the trans colors? Trans people are dying, black trans women and brown women are the reason that our rights exist in the first [place]. What are we doing here?”

Leaders of various nonprofits, on 17 February, filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration’s removal of the Pride flag at Stonewall. They told the Guardian they would support raising an inclusive Pride progress flag moving forward.

“Trans people were integral to the events of June 1969 that the Stonewall National Monument memorializes, and they’ve been an integral part of the movement for LGBTQ rights ever since, and they are part of the LGBTQ community,” said Andrew Berman, Executive Director at Village Preservation.

“Their erasure, which began even before the removal of the flag, has clearly been part of the federal government’s agenda.”

Beale agreed the Gilbert Baker Foundation would absolutely support the raising of a Progress flag – or any revised inclusive Pride flag, but is concerned that these debates might divide the community.

“There are some activists that are concerned, and I’m just like, just be chill. I mean, we’re happy to get anything with at least six colors up there. You know what I mean? I will not get into flag wars, and I don’t think it’s worth the debate about this flag versus that flag, because I’ve been in these debates and it’s a reductive downward spiral,” Beale said. “It’s never positive or affirming. People start taking sides.”

Trans activists, like Kauffman and others, disagree.

“Trans people are just asking for human decency and respect. It is not a matter of infighting at all. It is a matter of visibility and support,” said Kauffman. “We are simply trying to point out an issue that continually takes us backwards or keeps us stagnant rather than helping us move forward.”

Chloe Elentári, a trans woman and activist, emphasized: “We’re saying, no, we want to be included on the flag, because here’s the bottom line: it’s trans women and trans people of color who are the ones who are being actively murdered at this point.”

At least 27 transgender people were killed in violent acts in the United States just last year, according to the Advocates 4 Trans Equality.

“It’s really not just about the flag; it’s about the fact that lives are at stake,” said Xaddy Addy, a Black trans person. “When you put up the Progress flag, that means you are advocating for every single person under the scope, under the umbrella.”

Beale says his chief goal and the goal of the Gilbert Baker Foundation is unity for the LGBTQ+ community.

“Fly the flag that speaks to your soul,” he said. “There’s room in the sky for all of them.”