The city of Boise has installed a rainbow-colored wrap on the flagpole at City Hall in defiance of Republican state lawmakers who recently banned local governments from displaying unapproved flags, including the Pride flag.
The wraps were placed in outdoor plazas to show that the city is LGBTQ-affirming while adhering to the flag ban. City officials also hung a large sign with rainbow stripes and the words “Creating a City for All” on one of City Hall’s windows, and placed rainbow heart-shaped stickers on other windows that read “A city for everyone means a city for everyone.”
At night, the city illuminates the building’s exterior in the colors of the Transgender Pride flag.
Mayor Lauren McLean said: boise state public radio The city continues to comply with the law, noting that it only applies to flags and banners on government property. She said the rainbow flagpole wrapping demonstrates the city’s commitment to inclusivity and support to the broader Boise community.
“We have a rich history of arts and culture here,” MacLean said. “As allowed, we installed art that represents our values of being a safe and welcoming city for everyone.”
“The law is based on flags, and we’re using a rainbow, so it’s not a flag at all. So we can say we’re in full compliance with the law,” City Council President Meredith Stead told the Boise CBS affiliate. KBOI. “[T]He was just another way to celebrate our diversity and values. ”
The controversy surrounding the flag ban dates back to last year, when the Idaho Legislature banned the display of “unsanctioned” flags in schools and government buildings in an effort to discourage the display of the Pride flag. In response, the city of Boise adopted the Pride flag as one of the city’s “official” flags and legally allowed it to be flown on the flagpole outside City Hall.
Furious that the city managed to ignore the regulations it had tried to impose, Republican lawmakers returned this year with a bill that would create a list of “approved” flags and make it clear that the ban applies to unapproved flags. The bill, signed into law by Republican Gov. Brad Little, imposes a $2,000 fine for each person flying or displaying an unapproved flag on government or public property and authorizes the attorney general to sue groups that fly unapproved flags.
In compliance with the law, the city of Boise removed the Pride flag from the flagpole in the outdoor plaza hours after Little signed the act into effect on March 31st. But city officials have sought other ways to circumvent the spirit of the law, aiming to silence or limit the visibility of LGBTQ symbols.
State Rep. Ted Hill (R-Eagle), a proponent of the flag ban, told the paper. idaho politician He was hoping for some kind of response from the city, and thought it would be a mural.
“She’s disrespectful to other people,” Hill said of Mayor MacLean. “Is that City Hall or activist Pride Hall?”
Little’s office and Attorney General Raul Labrador’s office did not respond to requests for comment.
When asked about how to wrap the flagpole, city spokeswoman Maria Ortega said: idaho press “We continue to comply with the law and will no longer fly the city’s official pride flag on our property,” the city said in an email.
Ortega also mentioned stickers and signage at City Hall, saying area residents have generally responded positively to the flagpole and other rainbow-colored art installations.
“As of this morning, I have received several messages from community members, most in support of the exhibit and thanking the city, and a few in opposition to the initiative,” she wrote.
Source: Metro Weekly – www.metroweekly.com
