Latest news with #ProgressPride
Metro
18 hours ago
- Politics
- Metro
Christian group threatens Westminster Council over 'indoctrinating' pride flags
A London council has been threatened with legal action after hanging trans-inclusive Pride flags around Regent Street from this weekend. Group Christian Concern says Westminster Council is 'indoctrinating' visitors to the famous West End location and breaching planning control. The Crown Estate, which owns most of the property on Regent Street, lodged plans in March to hoist hundreds of flags in 20 locations between mid-June and mid-July to support Pride events. But after being permitted by Westminster Council in mid-May, Christian Concern says the council is opening itself up to potential legal action. In recent years, the display has included over 300 LGBTQI+ Progress Pride flags, developed in 2018 by non-binary American artist and designer Daniel Quasar. Based on the iconic rainbow flag from 1978, the redesign celebrates the diversity of the LGBTQ community and calls for a more inclusive society, celebrating trans, black and brown, gender non-binary and intersex community members. But hardline Christians say the flags, which on June 22 will replace Union Jacks currently flying to mark VE Day, create division by excluding more traditional views. Christian Concern has previously made the point to the council that the Cass Review prohibits the indoctrination and confusion of primary school children with trans ideologies. But the group claims: 'The flags do just that, exposing the hundreds of thousands of children who walk up and down Regent Street, including those who visit Hamleys, to a message and symbols which will be unlawful to teach and display in schools.' Last year, Christian Concern launched a petition signed by 31,000 people calling for a similar display to be stopped. Andrea Williams, chief executive of the Christian Legal Centre, said: 'Many people experience these flags as an attack on historic, traditional beliefs about sex and gender. 'They send the message that people holding these views, which are worthy of respect in a democratic society, are not welcome. 'The majority of the public does not know the highly controversial and harmful symbolism presented by the Progress Pride Flag. At the heart of the flag is the trans flag – pink for girls, blue for boys and white for the 'transition' phase. 'This ideology has been discredited by the Cass Review, the closure of the Tavistock, and most recently Supreme Court ruling. When will the Crown estate catch up with the rest of society? 'If the council chooses to proceed with the display, we will have no option but to pursue legal action.' The proposed flags will be hung from supporting wires, making use of existing fixing points which are intended for reuse. In the planning report, Westminster planning officer Shaun Retzback noted that the flags would be hung at 20 locations along the street running from Oxford Circus to Piccadilly from June 22 until July 17. He said: 'Flags are, in principle, an acceptable, colourful addition to Regent Street's buildings and there is a longstanding tradition of such displays. More Trending 'The flags proposed, to be strung on lines across the street, are not harmful to visual amenity for the temporary period sought, neither are they harmful when considered cumulatively with other flags and banners displayed on buildings in the street at present and across the street from time to time.' A Westminster City Council spokesperson told Metro: 'The council supports festivals and celebrations from our different communities across the year. Pride is an annual and established fixture and has been supported by the Council for many years. 'Pride flags are in keeping with a cosmopolitan City that welcomes millions of visitors every year. All public community celebrations have a fixed duration and are both proportionate and fitting. Given similar pronouncements in previous years we await further information about the Christian Legal Centre's legal challenge with interest.' Metro contacted the Crown Estate. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: £20 Pan-Indian feast from a Michelin-starred chef: 10 unmissable Time Out deals MORE: Enjoy the weekend's heat with London's best boat restaurants MORE: 'Swan Whisperer' banned from Hyde Park after residents objected to him kissing the birds
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Governor Evers celebrates recognizes LGBTQ small business owners in Chippewa Falls
CHIPPEWA FALLS, Wis. (WLAX/WEUX) – Governor Tony Evers took time to celebrate Pride month in the Chippewa Valley. He visited with LGBTQ small business owners at Ope, It's Soap in downtown Chippewa Falls. Wisconsin Tourism saw another year of record-breaking economic impact. Evers says that it is, in large part, thanks to small business owners and LGBTQ individuals who contribute to the local and state economy. 'We believe in the rights of LGBTQ folks. They're our neighbors… friends. We have to celebrate that and be proud of the community and what they've accomplished.' Earlier this month, the Governor ordered the Progress Pride flag be raised over the Wisconsin State Capitol to celebrate the start of Pride month. 2025 marks the seventh year in a row that the Pride flag is being flown at the State Capitol in Madison. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Spectator
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Spectator
Pride continues to crumble
In the canteen of the House of Lords last week, a friendly server asked me if I'd like some 'Pride pudding'. This turned out to be a rainbow-coloured crumble created in honour of Pride month. 'Er, no thanks,' I said, and then noticed a large 'Progress Pride' flag behind the counter. Oh dear, I thought. That'll set the cat among the pigeons. Sure enough, a couple of hours later the GC Cons Peers' WhatsApp group erupted. This is made up of those dinosaurs who style themselves 'gender critical' – i.e. they believe sex is biological, binary and immutable. For the uninitiated, the Progress Pride flag features a large, multicoloured chevron superimposed on the standard rainbow layout. The colours correspond to different groups that don't feel adequately represented by the common or garden Pride flag, and include the colours of the trans flag. (Yes, there's one of those, too.) Among the embattled armies facing off on the red benches, this flag is the banner of those who believe that trans women are women and should be granted unfettered access to women's spaces. That's long been an issue of heated debate in the Lords, but it's reached fever pitch following the recent Supreme Court ruling. We GC Cons naively thought this would settle the matter in our favour, but naturally the same progressives who during the Brexit wars condemned those who questioned the wisdom of the Supreme Court justices as rabble-rousing populists are now quick to condemn them as 'bigots' and 'transphobes'. Scarcely a week passes without the two sides locking horns over the judgment, with the LGBTQQIP2SAA Lab Peers arguing that it's meaningless until the Equality and Human Rights Commission has issued official 'guidance' about how to interpret it. Baroness Falkner, the EHRC's chair, is sympathetic to the GC cause, but she's due to step down in November and our opponents' plan is to delay the 'guidance' until they've managed to install a stooge in her place. Meanwhile, they're not about to lower their banner. So for the Progress Pride flag to be planted in the Lords' canteen was, for the GC Cons, a major defeat. The common parts of the House are supposed to be neutral ground. And, of course, another tactic of the pink-haired radicals (even some nonagenarian Labour baronesses have pink hair) is to present their highly contentious views on gender as politically settled, like climate change. In other words, this was a double blow – they'd parked their tanks in the demilitarised zone and succeeded in disguising them as electrically-powered UN peacekeeping vehicles. This could not stand! A tactic of the pink-haired radicals is to present their highly contentious views on gender as politically settled Several GC Cons immediately fired off letters to the Lords' bewigged officials. The doughty Baroness Nicholson was first over the top, quickly followed by Baroness Jenkin – the Boadicea of our tribe – and yours truly. My argument was that under the Equality Act the Lords has an obligation to foster good relations between those who have a particular protected characteristic and those who don't. Believing that sex is real is a protected belief and allowing the banner of those who think sex is 'assigned at birth' to fly in the canteen is hardly fostering good relations. No doubt the same peers who've rejected the Supreme Court ruling would dispute this interpretation of the Act and refer the matter to the EHRC, with judgment delayed until Falkner has gone. But, amazingly, the powers that be appear to have been convinced – not just by my letter, I'm sure – and over the weekend the flag was removed. Pride pudding is still on sale, but that's fine; it was the flying of the trans colours that was the issue, not the celebration of Pride Month. I even said in my letter that I had no problem with the Pride flag, which isn't strictly true. I'd prefer it if public institutions remained impartial when it comes to all political battles, even those the progressive left can justifiably claim to have won. No objection to gay rights obviously, but the Pride flag has come to mean much more than that and I find its ubiquitous presence in June oppressive, as if you're being ordered what to think about a whole cluster of issues. But one battle at a time and for now I'll take the win. In late breaking news, Labour has announced its preferred candidate to succeed Baroness Falkner – Mary-Ann Stephenson – and stone me if she isn't a bit GC herself. Was that a cock-up? I suspect not. My impression is that Sir Keir and his cronies recognise that prolonging this battle is a vote-loser, just as it was for the Democrats in the US election. The GC Cons may think we've succeeded in forcing the trans zealots to lower the Progress Pride flag. But in reality it's Labour that has abandoned this fight.
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
‘We're living in the dumbest timeline': Gov. Cox speaks on Utah flag ban
'They are dumb flags and it was a dumb bill,' Gov. Spencer Cox said Tuesday when speaking about Utah's flag ban bill and the alternative flags Salt Lake City approved in order to get around the bill. The comments were made during the governor's monthly press conference when he was asked how he felt about Mayor Erin Mendenhall adopting three new city flags. These new flags — adding the sego lily logo from Salt Lake City's flag to the Juneteenth, Progress Pride and transgender flags —were meant to get around the flag ban bill passed by the Utah Legislature. The new flags do not replace the city's primary flag, which was adopted in 2020. Cox repeated what he has said in the past, including that he doesn't support HB77, which banned the display of most flags by public school teachers and government entities. But the governor also made it clear that he doesn't approve of how Salt Lake City handled the situation. 'I'm sure they feel great that they got around this dumb law, and they did it with dumb flags, and it's just the whole thing's dumb,' Cox said. The governor said he feels bad for those being left out, such as Japanese Americans and Polynesian Americans. Cox did give a suggestion as to what he thinks should be done instead. 'We should raise the American flag, and let's unify around that, that it's a great flag that represents everyone,' Cox said. As he spoke about the flag ban and the alternative Salt Lake City flags, the governor used the word 'dumb' seven times in less than a minute. He ended his comments on the situation with a simple sentiment. 'We're living in the dumbest timeline,' Cox said.
Telegraph
10-06-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
‘Pride crumble' served in House of Lords
The House of Lords canteen has served peers a 'pride crumble' dessert with a rainbow-coloured topping. The River Restaurant in Parliament, which caters for peers and other staff on the parliamentary estate, offered as its hot dessert option on Tuesday a 'pride crumble'. The topping of the £2.15 pudding appeared to be dyed with red and blue food colouring in horizontal stripes, and was served with custard to mark Pride month. It is unclear whether the crumble was designed to resemble a particular LGBT flag, such as the rainbow flag, or the pink, blue and white transgender flag. It comes after the House of Lords removed Pride flags from its canteen put up at the start of June following a complaint from a peer. The 'Progress Pride' flag, which was among the decorations, includes the colours of the transgender movement and is seen by many as indicative of support for gender ideology – the idea that sex is a spectrum and that people can change their identity. Baroness Nicholson, a Tory peer, complained to the Lord Speaker, Lord McFall, and officials agreed that the flags should be taken down as they had not been sanctioned by the authorities. During her time in Parliament, she voted in favour of section 28, which banned the 'promotion of homosexuality' by local authorities, and against gay marriage. The Progress Pride flag, designed in 2021, is replacing the traditional rainbow Pride flag in many venues. It includes an extra triangle of colour on the left hand side, made up of stripes including white, pink and light blue – the colours of the transgender movement. The flags were not on display in the House of Commons restaurants. The canteen also served rainbow couscous for peers last week as part of its Pride celebrations. The Pride flag was flown from Parliament for the first time in history in June 2016. Last month, Reform UK announced that its councils would not be allowed to fly any LGBT or Pride flags, restricting local authorities to flying only the Union Jack and the St George's Cross.
