A Yosemite National Park ranger was fired after hanging a pride flag from El Capitan while some visitors face potential prosecution for alleged violations of protest restrictions that have been tightened under President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n
Shannon \u201cSJ\u201d Joslin, a ranger and biologist who studies bats, said they hung a 66-foot wide transgender pride flag on the famous climbing wall that looms over the California park\u2019s main thoroughfare for about two hours on May 20 before taking it down voluntarily. A termination letter they received last week accused Joslin of \u201cfailing to demonstrate acceptable conduct\u201d in their capacity as a biologist and cited the May incident.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was really hurting because there were a lot of policies coming from the current administration that target trans people, and I\u2019m nonbinary,\u201d Joslin, 35, told The Associated Press, adding that hanging the flag was a way to \u201ctell myself … that we\u2019re all safe in national parks.\u201d<\/p>\n
Joslin said their firing sends the opposite message: \u201cIf you\u2019re a federal worker and you have any kind of identity that doesn\u2019t agree with this current administration, then you must be silent, or you will be eliminated.\u201d<\/p>\n
Park officials on Tuesday said they were working with the U.S. Justice Department to pursue visitors and workers who violated restrictions on demonstrations at the park that had more than 4 million visitors last year. <\/p>\n
The agencies \u201care pursuing administrative action against several Yosemite National Park employees and possible criminal charges against several park visitors who are alleged to have violated federal laws and regulations related to demonstrations,\u201d National Park Service spokesperson Rachel Pawlitz said.<\/p>\n
Joslin said a group of seven climbers including two other park rangers hung the flag. The other rangers are on administrative leave pending an investigation, Joslin said.<\/p>\n
Flags have long been displayed from El Capitan without consequences, said Joanna Citron Day, a former federal attorney who is now with the advocacy group Public Employees For Environmental Responsibility. She said the group is representing Joslin, but there is no pending legal case.<\/p>\n
On May 21, a day after the flag display, Acting Superintendent Ray McPadden signed a rule prohibiting people from hanging<\/a> banners, flags or signs larger than 15 square feet in park areas designated as \u201cwilderness\u201d or \u201cpotential wilderness.\u201d That covers 94% of the park, according to Yosemite\u2019s website.<\/p>\n Parks officials defend restriction on protests<\/p>\n Parks officials said the new restriction on demonstrations was needed to preserve Yosemite\u2019s wilderness and protect climbers.<\/p>\n \u201cWe take the protection of the park\u2019s resources and the experience of our visitors very seriously, and will not tolerate violations of laws and regulations that impact those resources and experiences,\u201d Pawlitz said.<\/p>\n It followed a widely publicized instance in February of demonstrators hanging an upside down American flag on El Capitan in the wake of the firing of National Park Service employees<\/a> by the Trump administration.<\/p>\n