The Trump administration on April 13 agreed to allow the Rainbow Flag to fly at the Stonewall National Monument as part of a settlement in federal court, marking the latest chapter a dramatic two-month spectacle stemming from the White House’s explosive decision to remove the flag in February.
Lambda Legal and Washington Litigation Group, representing the Gilbert Baker Foundation, Village Preservation, and Equality New York, announced the news shortly after noon on April 13, saying they secured a settlement requiring the National Park Service to maintain three flags on the flagpole: The Rainbow Flag, the National Park Service (NPS) Flag, and the American Flag, with the American Flag sitting on top. The government has a week to follow through on the settlement, which stemmed from a Feb. 17 lawsuit in US District Court for the Southern District of New York.
“Within seven days of the filing of this Stipulation, the National Park Service shall hang three equally sized, three feet by five feet flags on the flagpole at Stonewall,” court documents state. “NPS will hang the American flag at the top of the flagpole in accordance with current guidance, and below the American flag, on either side, NPS will hang the rainbow Pride and NPS flags.”
The court documents further state the “Pride Flag will remain hanging at Stonewall and will not be removed save for maintenance or other practical purposes.”
The settlement comes two months after Gay City News exclusively reported on the Trump administration’s removal of the Rainbow Flag — a move that sparked outrage and prompted activists to take matters into their own hands and re-raise the Rainbow Flag in a jam-packed ceremony surrounding the Stonewall National Monument.
Gay City News was also the first to report on the government’s justification for the initial decision to remove the flag. The Trump administration told Gay City News that government-wide guidance dictated that “only the US flag and other congressionally or departmentally authorized flags are flown on NPS-managed flagpoles, with limited exceptions.” In court, however, plaintiffs argued that other non-agency flags — like the Confederate flag — have been granted exceptions for “historical context,” exposing an apparent double standard in the way the government applies that policy.
“The sudden, arbitrary, and capricious removal of the Pride Flag from the Stonewall National Monument was yet another act by this administration to erase the LGBTQ+ community,” said Karen Loewy, co-counsel for plaintiffs and senior counsel and director of constitutional law practice at Lambda Legal. “Today, the government has pledged to restore this important symbol back to where it belongs.”
It is not clear exactly which Rainbow Flag will be “restored” to the flagpole, which has had a Rainbow Flag there ever since activists held a re-raising ceremony on Feb. 12. Several different versions of the Rainbow Flag have flown at the flagpole in recent years — depending on which president is in office. Prior to President Donald Trump’s return to office, the Biden administration had permitted a Progress Pride Flag with an NPS logo on it. But when Trump returned to office, the new administration allowed only the original Rainbow Flag — and that was the one that was flying when it was removed earlier this year.
The settlement was welcomed by Michael Petrelis and Steven Love Menendez, who both led the way in the effort to install a dedicated flagpole for the Rainbow Flag at the Stonewall National Monument. However, they also expressed mixed feelings about it.
Menendez, while voicing his respect for the National Park Service rangers and praising their respect for the LGBTQ community, emphasized that the flagpole was originally meant for the Rainbow Flag — and only Rainbow Flags.
“When the permanent flagpole was installed, it was meant to display different iterations of Pride Flags that support the community,” Menendez told Gay City News. “Not being allowed to display the Progress Flag, Trans Flag, and others within the park is a great loss. I am grateful for the time being that a compromise has been made with the current administration. I look forward to the day when the flag display can be restored to its original intent that allows all iterations of the LGBTQ+ flags to fly. Until then, at least we have the original Rainbow Flag flying to serve as a beacon of light.
Petrelis, for his part, said he’s “very pleased” about the settlement, but voiced criticism of the plaintiffs, saying “both Lambda Legal and the Gilbert Baker Foundation played no role in the installation and indeed, the foundation opposed flying the Progress Pride flag at the Stonewall National Monument.”
In accusing the foundation of opposing the Progress Pride Flag, Petrelis cited a letter sent in 2022 by former Gilbert Baker Foundation board member Matt Foreman to Shirley McKinney, who at the time worked for the National Park Service. In the letter, Foreman said he was “confused and appalled by learning that the so-called ‘progress flag’ — not the historic Rainbow Flag — will be the one raised for pride this year. I ask you to consider this decision quickly.”
Petrelis accused both Lambda Legal and the Gilbert Baker Foundation of misrepresenting the history that led to the flagpole’s installation in a way “that diminished the advocacy of Steven Love Menendez and myself,” and further accused them of refusing “pleas to accurately detail this important chapter of the monument and flagpole in Christopher Park.”
Petrelis, however, offered high praise for McKinney, who worked with the activists to help make the flagpole a reality.
“Let’s applaud former National Park Service Superintendent Shirley McKinney, who was the federal official who authorized and paid for the flagpole, installation and creation of a Progress Pride flag with the NPS medallion on it,” Petrelis said.
Responding to Petrelis’ accusations, Charley Beal told Gay City News, “Through our Save The Rainbow Flag Initiative, the Gilbert Baker Foundation has fought to restore the Progress Flag, the Rainbow Flag, and all of our community’s flags in cities and states across the country after they have been banned, including a federal appeal in Hamtramck, Michigan. We have been fighting these bans long before the flag was removed from Stonewall, and we will continue this work after this victory. We appreciate the work that went into getting the rainbow flag flying at the Stonewall Monument. The Gilbert Baker Foundation supports flying the Progress Flag at Stonewall and beyond. As the Trump administration and others continue to marginalize the LGBTQ+ community and attempt to erase our representation and civil rights, it is crucial that we stand together and continue fighting back like our lives depend on it.”
The plaintiff’s original lawsuit stated, “For many years, members of the LGBTQ+ community, including plaintiffs, advocated for a display of the Pride flag at the Stonewall Memorial. Since 2017, the Pride flag flew on a portion of the surrounding park owned by New York City. Nonetheless, activists, including Michael Petrelis and Steven Love Menendez, continued to advocate for a display of the Pride flag at the Stonewall National Memorial with authorization from the federal government.”
The settlement prompted praise from elected officials in New York City, including out politicians and allies.
“No executive order or political stunt will take away our pride,” said Councilmembers Justin Sanchez of the Bronx and Chi Osse of Brooklyn, who both serve as co-chairs of the City Council’s LGBTQIA+ Caucus. “Our flag will continue to fly as a beacon at the Stonewall National Monument, no matter what publicity stunt this President tries to stage. And when he does, we will be ready: standing firm and fighting on behalf of LGBT+ New Yorkers.”
Out Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal, who took part in the flag-raising ceremony after the flag was removed, also welcomed the settlement.
I’m thrilled that after we rallied and re-raised the Pride flag with elected officials and advocates on February 13, 2026, the Trump administration has blinked and backed down from its contemptuous attempt to erase American history,” Hoylman-Sigal said.
City Council Speaker Julie Menin said, “The Pride flag belongs at Stonewall. This is sacred ground in the history of civil rights in our country and in the year of our nation’s 250th anniversary, we must honor and celebrate the history that unfolded there. This is an overdue reversal, and I’m glad to see this decision corrected, thanks to the advocacy of the LGBTQ+ community.”
