Another East Bay city may fly rainbow flag for Dublin after council’s rejection
An Emeryville councilman announced two rainbow flags will be flown at their city hall this year: one will be for Dublin.
EMERYVILLE — After the Dublin City Council voted to not fly a rainbow Pride flag above its city hall to support LGBTQ community, an Emeryville councilman announced a resolution: We’ll fly it for you.
Councilman John J. Bauters is proposing that his city will fly two rainbow flags this year during Pride Month in June: One for Emeryville and one for Dublin. The “Gotta Give Them Hope” flag raising ceremony will take place on June 8.
The Dublin Council voted 3-2 to not fly the flag above its own city hall, although it passed a resolution to support the LGBTQ community.
The Dublin council’s discussion last Tuesday centered on whether or not raising the pride flag for the month of June, or just one day, would set a precedent for other communities, religions or even sports teams. Several public speakers spoke out that if one flag is allowed, it could be a slippery slope and other groups would have to be allowed to fly flags.
Some speakers said although the town is diverse and inclusive, displaying a rainbow flag could be “confusing” for children or be viewed as promoting a specific political agenda. One speaker said he heard there’s been talk about adding a “P” to the LGBTQ acronym to stand for “pedophile,” and was against flying such a flag above Dublin.
“The Dublin City Council’s vote against raising the Pride Flag at City Hall sends a message to LGBTQ youth in the Dublin community that they can be silenced,” Bauters said in a statement. “Whenever others try to silence a member of the LGBTQ community, I stand ready to lift that voice.”
Bauters said his resolution is in direct response to the hateful comments that were made, and in solidarity with Dublin’s LGBTQ community. Bauters, who is openly gay, said in an interview with this newspaper that he received a number of phone calls in the days after Dublin’s decision. He stated he will fight bigotry, no matter how small his city is.
“I just decided anytime I saw a young person stand up for themselves or for the LGBTQ community, I was going to help problem-solve for them, no matter how far (away) they are,” Bauters said.
Last year, teen Christian Bales was banned from giving his valedictorian speech at the private Catholic Kentucky high school he was graduating from, Holy Cross High School. Bales identifies as gay and gender non-conforming. When Bauters heard this, he invited Bales to come read the speech at Emeryville’s pride month event.
He spoke with Dublin Councilman Shawn Kamagai, who is the city’s first openly gay councilman, and brought the resolutions before his council. Kamagai said he plans on attending the June 8 ceremony, and he and Bauters will raise the two flags together.
Bauters said he also spoke with Dublin Mayor David Haubert and Vice Mayor Melissa Hernandez, who both voted against the resolution to fly the flag. He said the two were receptive of his feedback of going forward to support the LGBTQ community.
Kamagai said last week that he was disappointed by the council’s decision, but not completely surprised. He applauded the efforts of Dublin residents who began organizing their own rainbow flag-raising events to support the LGBTQ community.
Congressman and Democratic presidential candidate Eric Swalwell, who previously served on Dublin City Council, also weighed in on Dublin’s decision.
“I would have voted to display it. Now more than ever, we must stand with the LGBTQ community, which is under attack by our commander in chief,” Swalwell told this newspaper on Friday. “It’s important that progressive communities like Dublin stand in solidarity.”
The June 8 event will need final Emeryville Council approval at an upcoming meeting, but Bauters said he spoke with the city attorney and mayor and said the council has been “extremely supportive” of these issues in the past. The event will be held at Emeryville Town Hall at noon and will also feature guest speakers Sen. Scott Weiner, D-San Francisco, and Councilman Kumagai.