The Trump administration has taken down a prominent Pride flag from the Stonewall national monument in New York City, a move that has sparked immediate condemnation from local officials and LGBTQ+ advocates. This action follows a recent interior department memorandum that limits the display of non-agency flags at national parks across the United States.
Historical Significance of Stonewall
The Stonewall national monument commemorates the pivotal June 1969 riots that erupted after a police raid on the Stonewall Inn, a popular gay bar in Manhattan's Greenwich Village. These six days of protests are widely recognised as a catalyst for the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement, making the site a powerful symbol of Pride and resistance. Designated as a national monument by Barack Obama in 2016, it has since served as a focal point for commemorating LGBTQ+ history.
Interior Department Policy and Response
The removal occurred over the weekend of 7 February, following a 21 January memo from the interior department, which oversees the National Park Service. The memo provides guidance on displaying non-agency flags, stating that only US flags, agency flags, and the POW/MIA flag are permitted at parks, with exemptions for flags that "provide historical context". According to the memo, interior department flagpoles are "not intended to serve as a forum for free expression by the public" but rather for expressing the federal government's official sentiments.
In a statement to the Guardian, the interior department defended the action, noting that the policy has been in place for decades and that recent guidance ensures consistent application across National Park Service sites. The department added that the Stonewall National Monument continues to preserve and interpret the site's historic significance through exhibits and programs.
Political and Community Backlash
Manhattan borough president Brad Hoylman-Sigal, who is gay, responded forcefully on social media, declaring, "They cannot erase our history. Our Pride flag will be raised again." He confirmed the flag's removal and highlighted the broader implications for diversity initiatives. New York City Council speaker Julie Menin and the council's LGBTQ+ caucus co-chairs have denounced the removal in a letter to the Trump administration, urging the National Park Service to restore the flag.
Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer from New York called the move "a deeply outrageous action that must be reversed right now" and expressed confidence that New Yorkers would ensure the flag's return. In response, protests are already being organised, with a demonstration scheduled for Tuesday evening in New York.
Broader Context and Previous Actions
This incident is part of a pattern under the Trump administration. In 2024, after Donald Trump's re-election, references to transgender people were removed from the National Park Service website for the Stonewall national monument. In June 2025, the monument excluded transgender and progress flags from its Pride month display. Contrastingly, under the Biden administration in June 2022, the Pride flag was raised on federal land at the site on the first day of Pride month, following a 2017 decision by then-interior secretary Ryan Zinke that allowed the flagpole to be considered on city land.
Stacy Lentz, co-owner of the Stonewall Inn, which operates independently from the national monument, criticised the removal as an "awful attack on the park" and expressed distrust in the government's handling of LGBTQ+ history. The ongoing debate underscores tensions between federal policies and the preservation of minority histories in public spaces.
