We will not be erased: Donald Trump’s theft of our Rainbow Flag won’t fly
One phrase was repeated numerous times at demonstrations around Christopher Park after the Trump administration stole our Rainbow Flag from the Stonewall National Monument: “We will not be erased.” Activists said it. Politicians said it. Even a makeshift sign attached to the fence at Christopher Park said it. That phrase captured the anger and resolve … Read More
Mark
0
5
One phrase was repeated numerous times at demonstrations around Christopher Park after the Trump administration stole our Rainbow Flag from the Stonewall National Monument: “We will not be erased.”
Activists said it. Politicians said it. Even a makeshift sign attached to the fence at Christopher Park said it.
That phrase captured the anger and resolve of a community under siege by the Trump administration, which has run roughshod over LGBTQ Americans since returning to office last year. The explosive decision to remove that Rainbow Flag was just the latest chapter in the president’s ongoing campaign to scrub the LGBTQ community from the Stonewall National Monument: The White House previously removed references to transgender and bisexual individuals from the monument’s web page and even wiped part of a page about the former New York City home of the late out gay civil rights activist Bayard Rustin.
Of course, it is not just a campaign of erasure at the Stonewall National Monument — home of the Stonewall Uprising and the birthplace of the modern LGBTQ rights movement. The White House has moved to ban trans individuals from the military; restrict gender-affirming care for youth and some adults; prevent trans kids from playing sports; root out LGBTQ representation through attacks on diversity, equity, and inclusion; and gut funding for queer health programs and other services — and that’s just a short list.
Against that backdrop, the Stonewall National Monument naturally emerged as a symbolic stage of resilience after the White House’s disgraceful attack on the flag. And it was a demonstration of the monument's importance to the LGBTQ community when a massive crowd gathered around the flagpole on Feb. 12 as elected officials and activists re-raised the Rainbow Flag in defiance of the Trump administration.
Chants of “Raise our flag!” and “'Whose Flag? Our Flag!’ rang out across Christopher Park. Loud, roaring cheers erupted from the crowd when the Rainbow Flag was, indeed, raised yet again — a joyous moment of defiance and triumph during one of the darkest weeks of Trump’s second term.
[caption id="attachment_61482" align="aligncenter" width="700"]
Community members look on during the flag-raising ceremony.Donna Aceto[/caption]
A week later, the federal government has yet to re-raise that flag; instead, the Trump administration strongly criticized the re-raising ceremony in a confusing, offensive, and rambling rant accusing the city of carrying out a “political stunt” that served as “a distraction” from the city’s “recent deadly failures” — even though the battle originated when the White House stole the flag in the first place.
The administration’s response was a far cry from the Biden era, when activists Steven Love Menendez and Michael Petrelis successfully convinced the White House to install the Rainbow Flag at the Stonewall National Monument — the first on federal land. If they had not stepped up the way they did, there would be no flagpole — and no re-raising ceremony.
In the end, that re-raising ceremony offered a reminder of the collective resolve of the LGBTQ community during trying times. The symbolic significance of the Rainbow Flag will ultimately outlast the dark Trump era — and those colors will continue to fly on that flagpole long after the president leaves office.
The fact that the unauthorized flag remains on the flagpole appears to be an admission of defeat by the White House. Now, the Trump administration must go further by reversing the decision to pull the flag and re-raising the stolen National Park Service-sanctioned Rainbow Flag on that flagpole.
No matter what the White House does, the community response underscored the most important message: We will not be erased.
Community members look on during the flag-raising ceremony.Donna Aceto[/caption]
A week later, the federal government has yet to re-raise that flag; instead, the Trump administration strongly criticized the re-raising ceremony in a confusing, offensive, and rambling rant accusing the city of carrying out a “political stunt” that served as “a distraction” from the city’s “recent deadly failures” — even though the battle originated when the White House stole the flag in the first place.
The administration’s response was a far cry from the Biden era, when activists Steven Love Menendez and Michael Petrelis successfully convinced the White House to install the Rainbow Flag at the Stonewall National Monument — the first on federal land. If they had not stepped up the way they did, there would be no flagpole — and no re-raising ceremony.
In the end, that re-raising ceremony offered a reminder of the collective resolve of the LGBTQ community during trying times. The symbolic significance of the Rainbow Flag will ultimately outlast the dark Trump era — and those colors will continue to fly on that flagpole long after the president leaves office.
The fact that the unauthorized flag remains on the flagpole appears to be an admission of defeat by the White House. Now, the Trump administration must go further by reversing the decision to pull the flag and re-raising the stolen National Park Service-sanctioned Rainbow Flag on that flagpole.
No matter what the White House does, the community response underscored the most important message: We will not be erased. 
