EVERETT — After denying a local nonprofit’s request to raise an LGBTQ+ pride flag at a public park, the city of Lynnwood is developing a policy to create explicit guidelines for the future.
In May, Lynnwood Pride notified the city of its plans to hold a pride flag raising event June 1 at Wilcox Park to celebrate the beginning of LGBTQ+ Pride Month. In an email to city officials, the group requested the city support the event by supplying a boom truck to hoist the flag.
Lynnwood’s current practice is to fly only the United States flag at city parks. Before allowing Lynnwood Pride to raise a pride flag at Wilcox Park, the city would like to adopt a formal policy regarding flags at public parks, Parks, Recreation & Cultural Arts Director Joel Faber wrote in an email response.
“For this year, my decision stands: the request to raise the Pride flag at Wilcox Park will not be possible,” Faber said.
On June 1, Lynnwood Pride met at the park to raise the flag themselves. Partway through the event, Faber arrived and asked the group to remove the flag.
“We’re incredibly disappointed in the city not supporting our efforts, our expressive right of free speech to raise a pride flag,” said Charlette LeFevre, co-director of Lynnwood Pride.
Lynnwood Municipal Code does not explicitly prohibit a pride flag from being flown at a public park and does not state what flags are allowed on city property.
At a City Council meeting Monday, Lynnwood Pride co-director Philip Lipson urged the city to adopt an explicit policy.
“We still feel it is vital the parks department have a policy to allow other flags that celebrate diversity such as pride flags, Black history flags and flags that celebrate Indigenous heritage also be displayed,” he said.
The city is in the process of developing a policy that creates a “clear distinction” of flags that are allowed at parks and city facilities, city spokesperson Nathan MacDonald said.
“We want to be clear that the City’s response was not because this was a Pride event; it was an issue of following the guidelines and requirements the organization agreed to and then didn’t adhere to,” he said. “We do hope to continue and strengthen our partnership with our LGBTQ+ community members in the future.”
On June 2, the city of Lynnwood held its own pride flag raising event at City Hall. More than 50 city employees, community members and elected officials attended the event, MacDonald said. For the past three years, the city has held a flag raising for employees. This year, the city opened it up to the public after requests from Lynnwood Pride, he said.
This year’s event took place at 12:30 p.m. on a Monday, which made it difficult for the public to attend, LeFevre said. City Hall is also obscured from the public, she said, as it’s hard to see from the road behind a row of tall trees.
Wilcox Park — also known as Flag Park — sits right off 196th Street, one of the city’s main roads. It has 27 flag poles, all flying United States flags.
MacDonald said thousands of community members visit Lynnwood’s Civic Campus each week. In addition to City Hall, the campus area includes the senior center, library and recreation center.
The city currently allows two exceptions to its current practice of flying only U.S. flags. Wilcox Park also has a POW/MIA flag to comply with federal regulations. At Veterans Park, flags are flown for each branch of the U.S. military.
“We do not plan to raise other flags within our parks until a formal policy is established,” MacDonald said.
Around the county, city practices regarding flags at public parks vary.
This year, the city of Everett is flying pride flags at two public parks — Forest Park and Thornton A. Sullivan Park — city spokesperson Simone Tarver said. Marysville does not have a policy regarding pride flags in public parks, city spokesperson Connie Mennie said. However, she said the city’s practice is to only fly the United States, Washington state and city of Marysville flags on city property. In Edmonds, only City Hall has a pride flag, city spokesperson Neil Neroutsos said, and the only flags in city parks are U.S. flags. None of these cities have an official policy in their municipal codes.
On June 2, LeFevre and Lipson sent an email to County Executive Dave Somers calling for Faber’s resignation.
“Lynnwood Pride does not see the first amendment expressive right to raise a Pride flag as needing permission, authorization or a permit,” LeFevre and Lipson wrote. “Joel Faber had no right or basis to deny us our expressive rights in a public park. Lynnwood Pride does not consider past exclusionary policies as reasons but furthering discriminatory practices.”
MacDonald said Faber had several discussions with Lynnwood Pride before June 1.
“Director Faber was well within his right to be at Wilcox Park and address this issue, and we support him fully,” MacDonald said.
Lynnwood Mayor Christine Frizzell addressed the controversy at Monday’s City Council meeting, highlighting the city’s public flag raising ceremony.
“Prior to this year, it was for employees only, but this year because of comments that were made last year we extended it to the community,” she said.
Council members Derica Escamilla and George Hurst spoke in support of brainstorming solutions for next year’s Pride Month.
“Pride, we fully support you, the council fully supports you,” Escamilla said. “I think maybe it didn’t appear in the way you would have liked to have seen it this year, and I wholeheartedly apologize. … We are making a conscious, good-faith effort to support it even further next year.”
Hurst suggested including a flag pole closer to 44th Street in current plans to redevelop the City Hall parking lot. Any organization that has a proclamation declared at a City Council meeting could raise their flag on the pole, closer to public view, he suggested.
Hurst and council member Patrick Decker expressed their support for Faber.
“I want to thank (Faber) for correctly applying city law and code at Wilcox Park last week,” Decker said. “He did an admirable job of professionally representing the city in a very difficult situation and has been unfairly attacked by Lynnwood Pride over his conduct.”
LeFevre said raising a pride flag in a public place is the single most important act Lynnwood Pride could accomplish to support the LGBTQ+ community.
“The pride flag is sacred to me,” LeFevre said. “When I see that in a window, or I see someone wear it, that gives me a sigh of relief.”
Isabel Mata, a Lynnwood resident and City Council candidate, spoke in support of Lynnwood Pride at Monday’s council meeting.
“The pride flag represents a community that has fought for recognition, belonging and safety, and if we say that Lynnwood is for all, then why not be proud to show that?” she said. “It’s about sending a message to the LGBTQ+ community — especially young people, especially the trans community, people who don’t necessarily feel safe in our city — that they matter and that they belong.”
Jenna Peterson: 425-339-3486; jenna.peterson@heraldnet.com; X: @jennarpetersonn.
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