NEW YORK (AP) — The Trump administration agreed Monday to keep flying a rainbow Pride flag at the Stonewall National Monument, reversing course after removing the banner in February.
The government revealed the decision as it seeks to settle a lawsuit filed by LGBTQ+ and historic preservation groups who had sought to block the removal. A judge must still approve the agreement.
According to court papers, the Interior Department and National Park Service “have confirmed their intention to maintain a Pride flag at Stonewall.” It won’t be removed, except for “maintenance or other practical purposes.”
Within a week, the Park Service will hang three flags on the Stonewall monument flagpole — the Pride flag will fly between the U.S. flag and Park Service flag.
The Pride flag had become a flashpoint for arguments over President Donald Trump ’s approach to the Stonewall site — the first national monument commemorating LGBTQ+ history — and various other historical properties.
Despite the flag's removal earlier this year, a yearslong campaign by activists had seen the flag symbolizing LGBTQ+ pride installed at the site in 2022 during the presidency of Joe Biden.
At the time, park service officials in New York described the flag as a sign of the government’s commitment to “telling the complex and diverse histories of all Americans.”
However, in February, the park service removed the flag, citing compliance with federal guidance on flag displays. A Jan. 21 park service memo largely restricted the agency to displaying the U.S., Department of the Interior, and POW/MIA flags, with exceptions for providing “historical context.”
Activists saw the flag’s removal as a targeted affront to diminish a site central to their struggle for rights and visibility, prompting an outcry for its reinstatement.
Following Trump’s return to office, he has focused on removing or altering materials within national parks that are seen as “divisive or partisan,” affecting how such spaces represent American history.
