The bipartisan measure to avert a government shutdown includes a provision that would effectively ban flying LGBTQ Pride flags over U.S. embassies.
The $1.2 trillion, 1,012-page package does not explicitly mention banning the display of Pride flags at U.S. embassies, but it does include LGBTQ Pride flags in government buildings. It includes a Republican-led effort to ban the display of the flag.
“Funds appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act shall be used to cover the obligation to fly or display flags on U.S. State Department facilities, except for the U.S. flag, the POW/MIA flag, and the hostage and hostage flag. “No unsuitable detainee flag, state flag, Indian tribal government flag, official brand flag of any U.S. government agency, or sovereign flag of another nation,” the text says. There is.
The Biden administration urged Congress to pass the spending bill, describing it as a “compromise between Republicans and Democrats” in a statement released by the White House Thursday. The measure will continue funding the government until September 30, ahead of a midnight deadline.
The White House did not mention regulations regarding flags over U.S. embassies in its statement and did not respond to requests for comment.
At least one Democratic lawmaker criticized the provision. Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Rep. Greg Cassar (D-Texas), a member of the Progressive Caucus, chalked it up as “laughable.”
“Threatening to shut down government services while trying to figure out which flags can be flown in front of which buildings shows how low the Republican Party is,” Cazale told reporters. said. “I think it's not only ridiculous for Democratic voters, but also for Republican voters.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson reportedly touted the provision as a victory in a closed-door meeting with other Republicans Wednesday morning, according to Bloomberg.
Some LGBTQ advocates downplayed the impact of the provision, pointing to successful efforts by the White House and Democratic Congressional leadership to remove it. Some anti-LGBTQ provisions Republicans initially added other funding measures, including limits on gender-affirming care for transgender Americans.
Brandon Wolf, a spokesperson for the Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest LGBTQ advocacy group, said: “This does not limit any other display of the Pride flag, the hosting of LGBTQ+ events, or the display of the Pride flag in the workplace of embassy staff. It is not an imposition.” in a statement Friday. “This is a desperate twist by a Speaker whose MAGA members have just seen their attempts to hijack the appropriations process rejected outright.”
In 2019, the Trump administration began denying U.S. embassy requests to fly Pride flags on flagpoles during LGBTQ Pride Month.
After Biden is sworn into office in 2021, the Pride flag will once again be allowed to be flown at U.S. embassies during Pride Month. But that same year, House Republicans introduced a bill known as the “Old Glory Only Act,” which would have required the appointment of a U.S. secretary. The state will ensure that “no U.S. diplomats or consulates will fly any flag other than the flag of the United States over such posts.” The measures failed.
On a local scale, there were also moves to enact effective pride flag bans.
In January, the Florida Legislature advanced a measure that would ban teachers and public employees from displaying flags depicting “race, sexual orientation, gender, or political ideological viewpoints.” And this month, more than 58% of voters in Hunting Beach, California, voted in favor of a measure that would ban pride flags and other nongovernmental organization banners from being displayed on city property.
Efforts to ban the flag, a decades-old symbol of unity and LGBTQ equality, come as far-right ideologues are using it to label gay and transgender people as child abusers for “grooming” and sexual objectification. This is done while trying to connect it to a metaphor that connects people. The kids.
