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Two US cities find loophole around Pride and Juneteenth flag bans. What to know

Brooke Baitinger The Olympian (Wash.)

Two progressive U.S. cities in red states found a new way around state laws banning Pride and Juneteenth flags from being flown on government property.

The cities simply incorporated the flags’ designs into official city flags so the flags can legally be flown on city property.

In Idaho, Boise’s city council approved two new flags Tuesday, May 6, the Idaho Statesman reported. One of the flags is the rainbow LGBTQ+ Pride flag and the other is the National Donate Life Month banner.

“The Legislature earlier this year banned most flags from flying on government property, but left an exception for ‘the official flag of a governmental entity,’” the outlet reported.

Five council members voted in favor of the move “saying that everyone was welcome and safe in Boise,” while one voted no, saying “she felt the city had to uphold the law and that constituents didn’t want the change,” the outlet reported.

In Utah, Salt Lake City took a similar measure, adopting the LGBTQ+ Pride flag, the transgender pride flag and the Juneteenth flag as official city flags with the city’s logo of a Sego Lily in the upper lefthand corner on the flags, KSTU reported.

The unanimous move brings the city under code with the H.B. 77 flag bill, which went into effect Wednesday, May 7, KTVX reported. The law restricts certain flags from flying on government property besides the U.S. flag, the Utah state flag, “flags of other countries, states, or cities,” college and university flags, military flags, Native American tribe flags, the National League of Families POW/MIA flag, Olympic flags and public school flags, the outlet reported.

The official flags adopted by the city were named to reflect the causes behind them, the outlet reported.

“The Sego Celebration Flag, representing the history of Juneteenth and the City’s Black and African American residents; The Sego Belonging Flag, representing the City’s LGBTQIA residents and broader acceptance of this community; and The Sego Visibility Flag, representing the City’s transgender residents and a commitment to seeing and celebrating their lives,” the outlet reported.

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