The raising of a Pride flag over a county jail in San Francisco has caused backlash after it was posted on TikTok. Conservative activist Graham Allen posted a link to the clip in a tweet that reads: “Our enemies are laughing at us.”
In the video footage, two deputies bring out the Progress flag alongside Old Glory to fly above county jail three.
Members of the San Francisco Sheriff’s Department and the San Francisco Police Department then salute the flags.
Black and brown stripes representing people of colour feature in the Progress flag alongside blue, pink and white stripes that symbolise the trans community.
A patch of the San Francisco Sheriff’s Department in Pride colours then appears on screen, with a caption that reads: “A call for Unity Visibility Equality”, which is matched with the soundtrack of Born This Way by LGBTQ activist Lady Gaga.
Read more: North Face ad featuring drag queen risks ‘losing half its customers’ – PR expert
The flag was first raised over the jail by the San Francisco Sheriff’s Department in 2021, MailOnline reports.
Deputy Sheriff Danilo Quintanilla, a member of the LGBTQ community, told The Bay Area Reporter: “When I was 18 I remember coming to San Francisco and going to my first Pride event and I was very moved to see not only law enforcement but also firefighters marching in the parade and it gave me courage.”
He added that he hoped the flag being flown would “help another young person’s life to feel validated.”
San Francisco Police Department Sgt Kathryn Winters, a trans woman, also commented on the event: “It’s an honor to be able to join the sheriff’s department at this small, but important, event. It wouldn’t have happened 20 years ago. It might seem like a small thing but it’s a huge thing.”
But despite positivity from members of the LGBTQ community, there has been opposition.
Turning Point USA’s Graham Allen wrote: “Our enemies are LAUGHING AT US. Absolutely DISGUSTING!”
The criticism was not just limited to anti-LGBTQ activists either, as Pennsylvania police officers Mike Shaw wrote on Instagram: “One of the dumbest things I have ever seen. You guys should be embarrassed.”
A commenter wrote: “WTF is SF Sheriff doing celebrating someone’s sexual preference?.”
Another said: “That’s why everyone is leaving.”
The San Francisco Sheriff’s Office responded: “The only flag we salute and wear on our uniform is the American flag. The core values of the San Francisco Sheriff’s Office are service, professionalism and pride. We take pride in our commitment to service, and in our deputies who reflect the diversity of the city in which we serve.
“Anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric does nothing but propagate more hate and undermine our commitment to inclusivity. We will continue to raise the Rainbow flag at our County Jail each year as a way to support and amplify the voices of our LGBTQ+ members.”
A CNN article commented on how a shifting climate for corporations and organisations in the US is prompting them to question embracing Pride month.
A Pride drag show at a Nevada Air Force base was cancelled earlier this month by Pentagon leaders.
It was reported that Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley cancelled the event on the basis of such events being “not a suitable use of federal funds and resources”.
Air Force Officials initially gave the go-ahead for the event, which encouraged friends and neighbours to attend with no minimum age requirement prior to it being shut down.
CNN’s Danielle Wiener-Bronner wrote: “Companies have long embraced Pride Month in June as an uncomplicated way to market to members of the LGBTQ+ community while telegraphing progressive values.
“This year won’t be nearly so straightforward.”
Bud Light and Target were just a couple of the companies that were attacked by conservatives over LGBTQ-friendly marketing campaigns, with the marketing strategies proving costly in some cases.
Daniel Korschun, an associate professor of marketing at Drexel University told CNN that businesses “are becoming much more skittish about taking these stands and making strong statements”.
“The pendulum is swinging a bit back… toward a more conservative approach, where they’ll be less vocal,” he said.
