After years of avoiding the issue, Los Gatos is moving forward with a policy that could allow a rainbow flag to fly above Town Hall within months.
High school students and members of the LGBT+ community faced-off with senior citizens and religious adherents Tuesday night at Council, as Los Gatos considered whether a “Progress Pride Flag” should flutter above its civic buildings (which would make it the 12th municipality in Santa Clara County to take such action).
Ken Windham (who told this reporter he’s a resident of “None of your business”), argued that displaying a 49ers or Baltimore Colts flag on your vehicle—or slapping a sticker on your bumper—is one thing, but raising a Pride Flag at Town Hall may invite demands from Nazis (or “Save the Dolphins” / “Save the Turtles” activists) to elevate their insignia.
“You’re opening the door to complete chaos,” he said, during public comment for the first regular-agenda item of Rob Moore’s mayoral career. “If that’s what you wanna do, you can.”
The Progress Pride Flag, which was designed by Daniel Quasar in 2018, adds a chevron on one side of the classic rainbow Pride Flag, to celebrate transgender people, people who died of AIDS and (with a brown stripe) people of color.
While the Bay Area served as the setting for the genesis of much of the gay rights movement, Los Gatos has a solid contingent of older, more conservative, residents, people from a variety of faith traditions and Republican voters—particularly now with the rightward tilt of Silicon Valley in the Donald Trump Second Term era.
And the town has a fraught recent history with lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights advocacy.
Councilmember Rob Rennie recalled how, a few years back when Marico Sayoc was mayor, there was such opposition to even discussing the possibility of raising the Pride Flag that the issue never made it to the full Council. Instead, Los Gatos voted to put rainbow stripes on a pair of local crosswalks on East Main Street, which sparked significant pushback from some quarters.
A pair of dueling rallies were held in the wake of that decision—and various confrontations: a smaller “love” walk attended by Proud Boys, Christians, Trump supporters and anti-abortion campaigners; and an “anti-hate” march attended by thousands that focused on a message of unity.
And those differing opinions were on full display, Tuesday night.
“To be honest, I’m frustrated,” said Nova Jayaraj, a Los Gatos High School student, speaking stridently in support of raising the rainbow flag. “This policy isn’t revolutionary.”
She said choosing to support the LBGT+ community with a flag-raising shouldn’t be a tough decision.
“For a place built on community, I expect you to keep building on that goal,” she said. “Being gay or transgendered is not a choice.”
At this, laughter erupted from parts of the audience. But she continued in a determined tone.
“This is our town, too,” she said, adding there are many who are paying close attention those who push back against flying the Pride Flag. “That decision will not be forgotten.”
Louisa Horwath, a young Los Gatos-Saratoga Youth Advocacy member in a Stanford hoodie, is one who will be watching how the debate concludes this time.
“I’m going to be honest here, being in this room scares me,” she said, during public comment, while expressing support for a flag-raising.
(Drew Penner / Los Gatan)
Horwath said she doesn’t get how putting up the Pride Flag would affect those who oppose it.
Jeffrey Suzuki, the president of the Los Gatos Anti-Racism Coalition, who is now about a decade beyond his own graduation day at Los Gatos High School, lauded the high schoolers who stepped-up to speak.
“You’re the best!” he said, adding, “This is a historic decision before us today.”
One LGBT+ community member who spoke during public comment about how unwelcoming the town can be for gay and transgender youth, opted not to provide a name when asked by the Los Gatan afterwards.
Debbi Wilson, a 72-year-old “Bapti-costal” believer from Morgan Hill, told Council it’s not just LBGT+ people who’ve been discriminated against.
“Christians are one of the most persecuted groups,” she said, adding that some perpetrators of mass violence have struggled with gender identity issues. “Shooters were actually transgender.”
Afterwards, when the Los Gatan asked her why on earth she thought this line of argument would be an effective tack in her effort to win-over people who might be on the fence about a flag-raising, her answer was simple: “You can never go wrong with the truth.”
Wilson told Council if they’re going to let the gay community have a flag-raising, they should also be willing to raise a Christianity-themed flag.
“Raise the ‘Appeal to Heaven’ flag,” she said, stating that George Washington went into battle with that one. “We won a war we never should have won, because God was on our side.”
She was referring to the Pine Tree Flag that references a quote by John Locke, in which the 17th century philosopher rejects the theory of the divine right of kings.
Los Gatos resident Riley Pereyra, a regional manager at the Ethos retail shop on North Santa Cruz Avenue, said flying two large rainbow flags in the window has been a “fantastic experience” for the business.
“I’m sure you’d want to have a community where people feel welcome and included and safe,” he said, adding there have been a couple vocal dissenters—but nothing too challenging. “Overwhelmingly, it is positive.”
Los Gatos resident Chris Wiley said establishing a flag policy for the benefit on a single group does a disservice to other special interests.
“I think we need to talk about other flags,” she said, bringing up the recent antisemitic attack in Australia and suggesting the community might want to consider flying the Israeli flag—or a flag for people with autism, or for veterans (who, she said, had to fight hard to build the Flame of Liberty Memorial outside the Civic Center). “I’m very serious.”
Though staff said only three members of Council had asked for the Pride Flag-related agenda item to come forward, right out of the gate Councilmember Matthew Hudes set the potential policy on a strong footing by voicing his support of it.
“Look, I start with Los Gatos being a welcoming and inviting community,” he said. “We should find a way to fly this flag next June.”
He said he heard loud-and-clear that being gay is not an ideology and not selected the way “other abhorrent ideologies” can be.
But, he added, it’s important to proceed in a careful manner.
“I think there’s a little more work to be done,” he said, asking for a review of what neighboring communities have done.
One of the most animated speakers of the night was Alexander Sanchez-Silva, a LGHS junior, who lives in Los Gatos.
“Really this debate has turned into a weapon,” he said. “Gay people are not a pawn in any agenda.”
He pooh-poohed the “slippery slope” arguments being made by some, who claim flying a rainbow flag will allow neo-Nazis and other hate groups to take over the flagpole.
As is his style, Councilmember Rennie engaged in deliberative-thinking in real time.
“For me this is not a no-brainer,” he said. “It’s a difficult subject.”
But he added, Sanchez-Silva’s speech made an impression on him.
“He said, to be discussing whether we put the flag (up) or not…it’s a disservice to gay people,” he began. “And I think that’s a good point.”
On the other hand, he wondered aloud, how do you support the LGBT+ community without making other groups feel like they’re receiving second-class treatment? He explicitly referenced how many Jews feel afraid due to antisemitism around the world.
“Of course, there are Palestinians that are feeling murdered,” he said, adding his wife grew up in Ukraine, and so he can understand there could be a desire to take public actions in support of that nation. “There’s been many people raped and murdered by the Russians.”
Then again, taking a pro-Ukraine stance with visible symbols could make local Russians feel unwelcome, he continued.
Rennie emphasized that he has family and friends who are gay, and say he understands the value of raising the rainbow flag in at least some venues.
“But is it right for us in Los Gatos?” he questioned. “I’m hesitant to rush into just doing the Pride Flag.”
He suggested sending the issue back to the Policy Committee to work out the details, but found no takers for this approach.
Mary Badame made it clear that she doesn’t support moving forward with a rainbow flag-raising.
“The current Town flag policy has worked well,” she said. “I’m supporting neutrality at this point.”
In the end, Council voted to direct staff to move forward with a flag policy update, as well as a separate resolution to fly the pride flag in June.
The motion passed 4-1, with Badame opposed.
The matter is set to return to Council early next year.
Nicely written story. I did not know that the Progress Flag had been imbued with the symbolism around the old Pride flag versions that included a black strip or border for those lost to HIV/AIDS. That’s a nice touch. That gives the black a double meaning. The Philadelphia version of the flag included black and brown to represent African Americans and Latinos. That addition was incorporated along with trans and other symbols using the chevron as you described in the Progress Flag, which has been largely embraced. It’s rather busy visually but respects the history of the original flag while being inclusive.