The rainbow flag’s been flying this June for Pride Month, but not on county buildings in OC. Last week, the Orange County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 to only allow U.S. government and military flags to fly on county property. The supervisors who voted for the new rule say the decision is not specifically about the Pride flag. They say flying any advocacy flags opens the county up to political division and conflict; that it’s a distraction. Opponents say this rule was created in direct response to a request to fly the Pride flag.
“Flying the Pride flag outside, say, a city hall or a county or city building, it's a phenomenon, at least in Southern California, that's only been happening really over the past five years,” says Gustavo Arellano, columnist for the LA Times. “And in Los Angeles, for instance, the [city] hall of administration, it flew a Pride flag over the building for the first time ever just this past week. So it's not like LA County and Orange County are markedly different.”
He adds, “We're at a time where LGBTQ visibility is more prominent than ever. And sadly, because of that, you're getting a backlash to that. So this is going to be a wedge issue for years to come.”