NEW YORK — The National Parks Service removed the large rainbow flag that sat on a flagpole at Stonewall National Monument at Christopher Park, which is located near the Stonewall Inn in New York City.
The site was designated a national monument by former President Barack Obama in 2016 to commemorate the Stonewall Uprising, which began in 1969, and is credited with kickstarting the modern LGBTQ+ movement.
“Under government-wide guidance, including General Services Administration policy and Department of the Interior direction, only the U.S. flag and other congressionally or departmentally authorized flags are flown on NPS-managed flagpoles, with limited exceptions. Any changes to flag displays are made to ensure consistency with that guidance. Stonewall National Monument continues to preserve and interpret the site’s historic significance through exhibits and programs,” the Interior Dept. communications office told ABC News in a statement on Monday when asked to confirm the removal.
FILE – A National Park Service sign marks the Stonewall National Monument outside the Stonewall Inn, Monday, June 17, 2024, in New York.
AP Photo/Pamela Smith, File
Asked when the flag was removed and whether the action is related to President Donald Trump’s executive order, NPS did not comment.
The rainbow flag is still pictured and listed on the NPS site.
“Visitors to Christopher Park will find the interpretive flag display featuring the Pride flag. The original Pride flag was debuted with eight colors in 1978, a few years after the Stonewall Uprisings, and each color symbolizes an aspect of the life and experience of the members of the community. It has since become an internationally recognized symbol,” the NPS site says.
The removal comes after the Trump administration canceled plans in 2017 to dedicate a pride flag at the Stonewall National Monument, arguing that that the flagpole sits on city land, not federal land.
But during the Biden administration, activists advocated for a flag to be added to the flagpole, which sits on federal land. And the flag was authorized.
Local officials were quick to react and have vowed that New Yorkers will not stand for it.
(ABC News contributed to this report.)
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