Political Notes: Symbols of LGBTQ pride still carry weight, draw protest

Each June brings a bevy of Pride flag raising ceremonies, Pride Month proclamations issued by politicians and other demonstrative displays of public support for the LGBTQ community. At times, the annual acknowledgements have been met with a shrug from those who have come to expect them each spring, particularly in the Bay Area where nearly all 101 of the region’s cities now mark the yearly LGBTQ observance.

Yet, this month, the normally pro-forma civic celebrations of Pride have come with renewed weight for many LGBTQ people fearful from seeing their rights attacked by the federal government. Already, transgender Americans have had their protections trampled on by the Trump administration, LGBTQ youth are seeing their schools’ supportive policies be targeted, and same-sex couples fret their right to marry may be annulled by a conservative judiciary.

And the simple action of raising a rainbow flag, or a variation on its six-colored stripes design, continues to draw debate. In the East Bay city of Sunol, education officials once again found themselves in a controversy over flying the Pride flag two years after former school board members voted to ban doing so, fueling the successful recall campaign against them last July.

Sunol Glen Unified School District Superintendent Shay Galletti, hired last year, had brought forward a 2025 Pride Month proclamation that was adopted by the three-person school board and had changed the marquee on the district’s building to declare, “Celebrating Pride Month.” But missing was the flying of a Pride flag, which was met with criticism from local LGBTQ leaders.

The omission was “a retreat,” wrote Castro Valley Pride President Austin Bruckner Carrillo, a gay man who serves on the Hayward Unified School District board and supported the recall last year, in a letter to the Sunol school leaders. “It sends the wrong message to your students, to your staff, and to your community. It tells those who would spread hate that intimidation works.”

Faced with the criticisms, Galletti quickly reversed course, issued an apology and announced that the single-school district with students in kindergarten through eighth grade would fly the Pride flag through the rest of the month. In a letter issued to the community in early June, she reiterated her commitment to ensuring all students in Sunol felt “seen, respected, and valued” no matter their identity.

“I have heard from those who feel these efforts did not go far enough and that not flying the Pride flag felt like silence or erasure. That was not my intent,” wrote Galletti, who added that she had been driven by wanting to be “both meaningful and mindful” in celebrating Pride Month while also “creating space for healing” due to the upheaval the school community had gone through since 2023. “The decision was also informed by a desire to protect what we display from being torn down or defaced, a heartbreaking but real concern based on past experience.” 

Other symbols of support for the LGBTQ community have also come under protest in recent weeks in Northern California. Down in Monterey along the Central Coast, a proposal to paint three rainbow-colored crosswalks in the tourist-dependent town was met by vocal opposition from those who denounced seeing city resources be used for such a purpose.

It led to a compromise approved 4-1 by the City Council to have one crosswalk sporting the colors of the Pride flag be installed as long as it was paid for by private funds. Within hours of seeking donations, Monterey Peninsula Pride raised $6,000 for the installation of the colorful striping.

The crosswalk spans the roadway entrance to the downtown commercial corridor along Alvarado Street at its four-way intersection with Munras, Polk, and Pearl streets where the popular Alta Bakery and Cafe is located. It debuted the morning of June 13 and will be officially unveiled by civic and community leaders Tuesday, June 17, during a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 3 p.m.

Presiding over it will be gay Monterey Mayor Tyller Williamson, who had brought forward the idea of installing the trio of rainbow crosswalks in his city. After first winning a council seat in 2018, Williamson has sponsored a Pride proclamation each year. In 2020, he led the effort to also have the city fly the Pride flag for June, a tradition he has kept since becoming Monterey’s first Black and first out mayor in 2022.

This year, due to the anti-LGBTQ political climate being fanned by Republican President Donald Trump and conservative lawmakers across the U.S., Williamson wanted to go a step further in having Monterey show how it is an accepting city for all, residents and visitors alike, year-round.

“The whole purpose behind the crosswalk is visibility, and we just felt like that was the most visible space in town where not only locals but visitors would be able to pass by, see it and know we are a welcoming community to everyone every day,” said Williamson, speaking to the Bay Area Reporter by phone from Isola delle Femmine during a visit to Monterey’s Sister City in northwestern Sicily. “In addition, that is near the start of our annual Pride parade, so it will be a great way of kicking off the parade this year,” which will begin at 11 a.m. Saturday, June 28.

Williamson, who flew home Sunday, had raised the Pride flag and issued the Pride Month proclamation in late May this year due to his two-week trip to the Mediterranean, which he noted had resulted in some grumbling from those who still question the annual recognition for the LGBTQ community. Doing so has always been important and meaningful, said Williamson, but this year he feels it has taken on even more significance for many.

“I think the reason why people are feeling more oomph behind it is because of the current administration’s efforts trying to undermine DEI efforts,” said Williamson, using the acronym for diversity, equity and inclusion. “I think it is all the more important that we recognize the need still exists around creating protections for the LGBTQ-plus community and making sure everyone in our community feels welcome and that they belong.”

Noting that “Trump didn’t get elected by himself; people elected him,” Williamson told the B.A.R. he believes those supporting the Republican president’s moves to diminish DEI programs are doing so because they feel they are being “left behind or forgotten” in light of the pro-diversity efforts. It also explains the negativity toward cities supporting Pride Month, he added.

“It is unfortunate because this symbolism isn’t about leaving anybody behind. It is in fact the opposite and about being inclusive,” said Williamson. “The only other point I would make is it is symbolic; to me this is the easy part of the work that needs to be done. There is so much more work that needs to be done within the LGBTQ-plus community to ensure we are providing the services needed for a community dealing with the highest rates of homelessness, suicide, and mental health related issues. We need to ensure we are investing our dollars to ensure folks in the queer community have the protections and support needed to be contributing to our society.”

Up in Northern California not far from the border with Oregon, someone in early June stole the Pride banner from the front of the United Congregational Christian Church in the port city of Eureka. When the more than 165-year-old Humboldt County church replaced it with a trans Pride banner, someone shredded it to pieces overnight.

“The banners – bearing messages like ‘A Just World for All’ and representing both Pride and Trans communities – are sacred symbols of visibility, hope, and affirmation. Replacing them is more than a repair. It’s a proclamation: We are still here, and our love will not be erased,” noted Robert Christensen, who organized a successful online fundraiser to buy a host of replacement banners for the church.

Due to overwhelming support from the public, the church upped its ask to $3,000 and easily surpassed that goal. Its fundraising appeal remains ongoing and, as of Friday afternoon, was near to netting $4,000 for the church that has been affirming of the LGBTQ community since 1995.

The money will also be used to securely mount the banners to protect them from future theft and destruction, as well as add lighting and security enhancements to deter any more vandalism of the church’s banners and property. A portion will also go toward the Community Pride Dinner that the dual-affiliated church of both the United Church of Christ and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) is hosting on June 28, Pink Saturday.

“We’re keeping the campaign going so that United Congregational Christian Church can take the next faithful steps to protect and expand our visible witness of welcome and affirmation in Eureka,” church leaders stated in a note of thanks added to the fundraising page.

Newsom proclamation missing, so far
Perhaps by Pride weekend, held each year on the last Saturday and Sunday of June, California Governor Gavin Newsom will have issued a proclamation declaring it being Pride Month in the Golden State. While he had done so last year on June 1, as of last week the Democratic leader had yet to release such a declaration for 2025.

Via his social media accounts, Newsom had marked the start of Pride Month with posts on June 1 that wished “Happy Pride, California!” The message noted that, “This month, California celebrates the beauty and resilience of the LGBTQ+ community. We honor all that they’ve achieved and survived, and we will continue to fight in defense of everyone's right to love and live freely.”

For unknown reasons the governor’s office since April has been late in issuing proclamations declaring a month in honor of a certain community or cause, as he waited until April 15 to declare it Arab American Heritage Month. It wasn’t until the last two days of May that Newsom proclaimed the month as Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, Foster Care Month, and Mental Health Awareness Month.

Asked last week by the B.A.R. if a Pride proclamation would be forthcoming from the governor, and if Newsom planned to participate in any Pride parades this year, a spokesperson for Newsom was noncommittal, saying in an emailed reply, “we’ll be sure to keep you posted on any announcements.”

The lack of an official Pride Month proclamation from Newsom on the Sunday kicking off June was particularly noticeable due to Trump also not issuing such an acknowledgment. In response to being asked about it during a June 3 briefing with the White House press pool, Trump press secretary Karoline Leavitt said, “There are no plans for a proclamation for the month of June, but I can tell you this president is very proud to be a president for all Americans, regardless of race, religion, or creed.”

Yet, the day prior, the U.S. Department of Education had declared June as “Title IX Month” in honor of the 53rd anniversary of Title IX of the Educational Amendments being signed into law. In a statement the agency noted that the month “will now be dedicated to commemorating women and celebrating their struggle for, and achievement of, equal educational opportunity.”

It brought snickers from some LGBTQ leaders, who noted that Title IX was what led the Biden administration last year to issue new rules protecting trans students from discrimination. It is also cited by California education leaders in informing local school officials that “all persons, regardless of their gender, should enjoy freedom from discrimination of any kind in the educational institution of the state.” 

As Advocates for Trans Equality had noted  last spring, “These new rules make it clear that the general provisions of Title IX prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sex protect trans youth from harassment and discrimination in education because, as the Supreme Court stated four years ago in Bostock v. Clayton County, it is impossible to discriminate against a person because of their sexual orientation or gender identity without discriminating against them based on sex.”

The Political Notes column is taking a summer hiatus and will return Monday, July 14.

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Got a tip on LGBTQ politics? Call Matthew S. Bajko at (415) 829-8836 or email [email protected] .