Michigan city votes against allowing Pride flags on public property after contentious council meeting
The city council in Hamtramck, Michigan, says Pride flag ban is about respecting religious rights of its citizens
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A Michigan city near Detroit has decided against allowing Pride flags on public property after a bizarre and contentious municipal meeting.
The Hamtramck City Council voted Tuesday to ban Pride flags from public flag poles due to opposition from religious groups who disagree with the ideology represented by the symbol.
"We want to respect the religious rights of our citizens," said Councilmember Nayeem Choudhury, Fox 2 Detroit reports.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}WHITE HOUSE ACCUSED OF US FLAG CODE VIOLATION OVER PRIDE MONTH DISPLAY
The Hamtramck, Michigan, City Council agreed not to allow Pride flags on public property on Tuesday. (Fox 2 Detroit)
The entirety of the Hamtramck City Council is Muslim, and approximately 40% of residents were born in foreign countries.
The meeting took a strange turn when a woman in a clown nose took the podium to mock the Pride flag debate.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Sure, many Hamtramck residents have fled countries where being gay is a death sentence, but nothing says we have to make it 'comforting' and 'welcoming' here," the woman said in a sarcastic speech.
A woman speaking to the Hamtramck, Michigan, City Council wears a clown nose during a sarcastic speech mocking the Pride flag ban on public property. (City Council of Hamtramck)
She continued, "While we can't legally discriminate against LGBTQ people in the United States anymore, the City of Hamtramck can say, 'Ew, no, be proud somewhere else.'"
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The ironic testimony before the city council included visual gags carried by another woman assisting her. At the end of their presentation, the pair kissed each other in protest.
"You guys are welcome," said Choudhury. "Why do you have to have the flag shown on government property to be represented?"
"You’re already represented. We already know who you are," he added.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The council's decision not to allow the Pride flag from public property does not affect private businesses or residences.
Two women kiss in protest of the Pride flag ban at the Hamtramck, Michigan, City Council meeting. (City Council of Hamtramck)
The motion allows for the flying of five different flags on public property: the U.S. flag, the Michigan flag, the Hamtramck flag, the Prisoner of War flag and a unique flag representing the nations from which many Hamtramck citizens hail from.