A Washington State mayor scolded an LQBTQ+ activist who was outraged that the Prisoner of War/Missing in Action flag was allowed to fly over city hall, but the Pride Flag was not.
Newcastle Mayor Robert Clark was berated by activists at a public hearing Tuesday night as citizens of the city — located about 12 miles from Seattle — were upset over the council’s decision last year to stop the Pride flag from being flown at City Hall during Pride Month.
Toward the end of the three-hour-long session, an activist stood in front of the council and called Clark “disgusting” and claimed he and some of the elected city officials were trying to “trick” people out of believing the Pride flag can’t be flown by flying the POW/MIA flag.
“There are 82,000 Americans registered as POWs and MIAs, but there’s 20 million minimum LGBTQ members,” the activist said.
“I’ve talked before about the hypocrisy, and I think that your approach to trying to trick people out of having to fly the Pride flag in June by making sure the POW-MIA flag was flown is really disgusting.”
She then told Clark and the council they should be “ashamed” of the decision.
As she walked away from the podium, her comments sparked a fire inside Clark, who immediately called her out for alluding that his city was using the flag as a “political stunt.”
“It’s not common that I respond to public comment, but I will not sit here and have somebody tell me that veterans are a political stunt. How dare you,” the mayor declared.
“This country was founded because veterans lost their lives, hundreds of thousands of people died for this country so you could fly your Pride flag. Man, I am pissed.”
Clark then told the woman to never “disparage veterans” in his presence again.
“Those 82,000 people who never came home will never have a chance to have a family or grow up while you can fly your pride flag, they sacrifice their lives all over the world for America and for Freedom around the world,” he said.
The outraged mayor told the activists that he “tolerated” her comments in person and on Facebook in the past — claiming they are “always on the attack” and “libelous” — as he delivered a stern message for the group.
“You probably can’t help yourself, but don’t ever disparage veterans in front of me,” Clark reiterated as it appeared she or someone in the crowd tried responding.
“We’re done,” the mayor firmly stated before moving on to the next speaker.
The LGBTQ+ activist’s comments come as Newcastle City Council voted last year not to raise the Pride flag, KOMO reported.
That decision was later flipped in a vote of 4-3 in favor of raising the flag and prompted Clark to question what flag could be raised next if the Pride flag was allowed to fly over city hall.
“If we start raising flags, then we’ve got to raise everybody’s. Do you want a Hamas flag flying over the City of Newcastle? Or a MAGA flag,” Clark told KOMO in June.
“How about a Trump flag or an Antifa flag? We’re not going there folks,” Clark stated, “everybody is equally represented by the American flag.”
In 2019, during President Trump’s first term, he signed a bipartisan bill — sponsored by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) — requiring the POW/MIA Flag to be displayed whenever the US Flag is displayed.
The law effectively ensures that both flags are displayed concurrently and daily at federal locations already designated under existing law, including the White House.
The black flag, with a silhouette of a prisoner of war with his head down standing before a guard tower and barbed wire, was designed by Newt Heisley in 1971 for the wife of Navy Lt. Cmdr. Michael Hoff — whose husband was never found after he was listed as missing in action during the Vietnam War.
The POW/MIA flag is a symbol of the sacrifices made by those who were captured as prisoners of war or remain unaccounted for in foreign conflicts and serves as a reminder of the honor, bravery, and resilience US servicemembers have while protecting freedom.
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