A symbol of inclusivity you won’t be seeing outside a Huntington Beach government building anytime soon. Photo: Sophie Emeny//Unsplash
Surf City, USA, has passed a measure that would effectively ban the rainbow Pride flag from flying on city property. On Wednesday, Huntington Beach, Calif. voters passed Measure B, an ordinance that prohibits nongovernmental flags being flown outside city buildings and other facilities.
Though the Huntington Beach Board of Supervisors had already adopted a similar policy back in June, this new vote enshrines the flag ban into the city charter. More than 58 percent of voters cast ballots in favor of Measure B, according to the latest tally provided by the Orange County Registrar of Voters.
The measure specifies that only a select list of flags can be flown on City property: the American flag, the POW/MIA flag, the State of California flag, the Huntington Beach City flag, the County of Orange flag, or any of the flags of the six branches of service: the Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, Marine Corps, and Space Force. An exception was included for flying the Olympic flag during the Summer Olympics. There is a caveat that the city can display other flags, but only if authorized by a unanimous vote of all members of the City Council.
“Our whole goal in bringing Measure B forward was to focus on unity,” Huntington Beach Mayor Gracey Van Derk Mark told NBC. “We want to remove all special interests and just focus on flags that represent all of us regardless of our race, gender, sexual orientation.”
The measure appears benign on its face – few would object to a city building flying the American or California flag. However, the more important aspect is the much longer list of banners that the measure effectively bans. An argument against the measure, written by council members Dan Kalmick, Natalie Moser and Rhonda Bolton, stated that “The underlying intention is evident. The ordinance, which this Charter Amendment is based on, aims to prevent our City from displaying the Pride Flag. This isn’t just about flags; it’s about enshrining exclusivity in our City’s foundational document.”
Though Measure B seems mostly aimed at the Pride flag, it would also prohibit the display of other banners such as breast cancer awareness and religious flags.
“The Huntington Beach City Council is run by a hateful majority whose only interest is advancing an agenda of intolerance for minority communities, including LGBTQ+ individuals,” said Peg Coley, the executive director of the LGBTQ Center Orange County. “The pendulum always swings back and history is the harshest judge, but informed votes are the very best prevention.”
The measure is the latest in a series of ways Huntington Beach has made a stand against inclusivity, led by a conservative majority in its city council. In August of 2023, the council voted to disband the city’s Human Relations committee, a task force aimed at combating hate crimes and incidents. Then, in December, the city council proposed a program designed to replace cultural celebrations like Black History Month and Women’s History Month with a series of monthly themes that included “the Revolutionary and Civil War” and “Black Gold Jubilee – Honoring the Discovery of Oil.”
“A lot of this is taking Huntington Beach back to how it was,” Huntington Beach Mayor Gracey Van Der Mark told NBC News. “A lot of cities are afraid to push back because they don’t want to be the target of Sacramento. We’re not afraid.”
“They want to make MAGA a negative connotation,” added City Council member Tony Strickland, referring to left-leaning critics. “But President Ronald Reagan said it first. I do want to Make America Great Again.”
The measure is one of many efforts by conservative lawmakers to prevent the rainbow flag from flying in government buildings. In Tennessee, a bill that would largely ban displaying pride flags in public school classrooms was passed by the state’s house in February and is expected to clear the senate as early as next week. A similar bill advanced in Florida would go so far as to even ban teachers from wearing the pride flag as a lapel pin.
