A move to raise a Pride flag on town property has intensified political division in Boonton, where the mayor vetoed a council-approved measure that would have allowed the flag to fly in a local park.
A move to raise a Pride flag on town property has intensified political division in Boonton, New Jersey, where the mayor vetoed a council-approved measure that would have allowed the flag to fly in a local park.
Victoria Somers, who runs a shop on Main Street and is a member of the LGBTQ+ community, said the veto leaves residents like her feeling shut out.
"So the other half of us that just wanted that singular flag in that singular place for the month of June, we're just supposed to fade into the darkness I suppose," she said. The debate came to a head during a contentious council meeting in which one resident argued against allowing additional flags by distributing photos of a Nazi flag. Council members turned away as attendees booed.
The council ultimately voted 5-4 to permit the Pride flag on town flagpoles, but Mayor James Lynch rejected the measure.
"I don't think that five people should dictate what half the people that took their time to writing, and came personally to oppose," Lynch said. "That flag to me represents the LGBTQ community, but is also a symbol of safety and inclusion," she said. Lopez added that she moved to Boonton seeking a community where her Latino family would not face discrimination.
"Being able to raise my family here - we're from Latino background - and feel my kids won't be selected or discriminated against," she said. Flag policy in Boonton has shifted in recent years depending on which party held the council majority. Democrats gained control for the first time this year.
"There was no argument when they were in the majority. Now that argument went another side, the side standing for equality, the side standing for visibility, when that side is in majority, now we get that argument. I think it's a little disingenuous," he said. Have a breaking news tip or an idea for a story we should cover?
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