WEST VILLAGE, Manhattan (WABC) — A rally is planned on Thursday at the Stonewall National Monument after the Trump administration replaced the Pride flag with an American flag earlier this week.
Many people are upset after the Pride flag was removed from the monument in Greenwich Village.
The flag was taken down under new guidance from the Trump administration stating that only U.S. flags, or flags authorized by Congress, can fly at sites run by the National Park Service.
But some say an exception had previously been granted under President Joe Biden.
The site was designated a national monument by President Barack Obama in 2016 to commemorate the Stonewall uprising of 1969, when LGBTQIA+ community members protested police after a raid at the Stonewall Inn.
Stonewall is widely considered the birthplace of the modern Pride movement.
The Pride flag was taken down earlier this week. Community members had planned to put it back up Thursday afternoon, but an American flag was installed the other day.
They still plan to rally at 4 p.m. to raise the Pride flag again.
Governor Kathy Hochul showed her support on Wednesday.
“Listen, I love the American flag. It’s appropriate to have it at national monuments and national parks. Why take down the Pride flag that has been part of this history for 50 years? I think it was mean spirited to take the Pride flag down, and we want it back up,” Hochul said.
Another rally is expected Thursday morning at 9:30. City Council members and activists are expected to attend.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani posted on social media that “no act of erasure” will silence history.
“I am outraged by the removal of the Rainbow Pride Flag from Stonewall National Monument. New York is the birthplace of the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement, and no act of erasure will ever change, or silence, that history. Our city has a duty not just to honor this legacy, but to live up to it. I will always fight for a New York City that invests in our LGBTQ+ community, defends their dignity, and protects every one of our neighbors-without exception.”
Elected leaders have been quick to react and City Council Speaker Julie Menin sent a letter of protest to the National Park Service and posted on social media:
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