1 of 6 | Supporters watch as local politicians and others raise a Pride flag on Thursday at the Stonewall National Monument after the Trump administration had the National Park Service remove it earlier in the week. The monument recognizes The Stonewall Inn as a legendary Manhattan gay bar that was the site of a 1969 uprising credited as a turning point in the modern LGBTQ-rights movement. The decision to take down the flag sparked backlash from national civil rights groups and LGBTQ advocates. Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo
Local politicians and people gathered to raise a Pride flag at the Stonewall National Monument in New York City Thursday, after the U.S. Department of the Interior removed a flag on Tuesday.
“We have brought the flag back to a sacred site,” Brad Hoylman-Sigal, Manhattan borough president, said via bullhorn, The New York Times reported.
Federal employees raised an American flag on the pole on Wednesday afternoon. By Thursday evening, both flags were side by side.
Initially, the officials hung the flag just below the American flag, but the crowd shouted, “higher!” People from the crowd moved in and raised the flag to be next to the American flag, The Times reported.
“If you can’t fly a Pride flag steps from Stonewall Monument, at the National monument for LGBTQ liberation, where can you fly it?” Hoylman-Sigal told The Hill. “So, we put it back.”
Timothy French, 47, a drag performer from the Bronx who uses gender-neutral pronouns, said the flag-raising made them emotional.
“We, you know, are part of a bigger picture,” French told The Times. “We represent everyone in this country. This is a landmark for our community that’s important to so many people across the world.”
French said they had endured some recent difficult times. They were assaulted on the subway and had a transgender friend who was hospitalized after an attack.
The monument is under the jurisdiction of the National Park Service, so it’s unclear how long the flag will be allowed to stay.
The Park Service said the flag was removed according to a federal memo issued Jan. 21. The service said, “only the U.S. flag and other congressionally or departmentally authorized flags are flown on N.P.S.-managed flagpoles, with limited exceptions. Any changes to flag displays are made to ensure consistency with that guidance,” it said.
On Thursday, Julie Menin, New York City Council speaker, said she and other lawmakers sent a letter to the Park Service demanding the return of the flag.
“Stonewall is a sacred site in this city,” she said. “It is sacred ground for civil rights and sacred ground for the LGBTQ community.”
The monument is in Greenwich Village, and it commemorates the Stonewall Inn, a Manhattan gay bar that was the epicenter of the six-day 1969 Stonewall riots, which sparked a renewed LGBTQ+-rights battle. It was designated a monument in 2016 by former President Barack Obama. The site is 7.7 acres, including the Stonewall Inn, Christopher Park and other areas nearby.
In February 2025, the Trump administration removed mentions of “queer” and “transgender” from the monument’s website.
