Petition to Raise a Rainbow Flag at Middletown Township Building

The global pandemic has exacerbated mental illness among all populations, including children. For this reason, wellness is currently a top concern for many parents. It is important, however, to recognize that certain subgroups are dealing with multiple factors that negatively impact mental health, some of which arise due to social stigmas and biased attitudes. The LGBTQ+ community is one such group that is currently facing multiple stressors.

Recently, at a town meeting, Middletown South junior Frankie Stella was supported by dozens of local residents when she offered a substantive public comment and a proposal to be considered by Middletown’s leadership. In her comment, Stella cited this statistic as evidence: “4 out of every 10 LGBTQ+ youth considered suicide in just the past year. According to the same survey [conducted in 2021], ‘LGBTQ youth who had access to spaces that affirmed their sexual orientation and gender identity reported lower rates of attempting suicide’” (4 April 2022).

Stella and the nearly 1,200 people who have signed her petition to raise a pride flag in Middletown believe that this symbolic gesture is an important step that affirms the identities of people who often face discrimination and harassment, both of which can increase the occurrence of mental health issues.

Those who have signed this petition believe that no person should feel as if their life doesn’t have value; no one should be forced to conceal their identity and be made to feel lesser. As Americans, we should all be afforded the same basic personal freedoms. And isn’t one’s personal expression of identity a fundamental freedom? Article 19 of the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights asserts “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression” (UN.org). This essential value drives students like Stella to continue their public campaign to protect and honor populations who have typically faced discrimination and exclusion. In her public comment, Stella stated, “community members, as well as LGBTQ+ youth, should feel welcomed, accepted, and celebrated. A flag at Town Hall, the center of our community, is a perfect symbol of inclusivity. Not only are we shining a light on the LGBTQ+ community, we are bringing awareness to the importance of allyship and compassion within Middletown. To summarize, raising a pride flag in the month of June could actually save lives, children’s lives” (4 April 2022).

As it represents a symbol of love and acceptance, the pride flag should not be controversial. According to History.com, the flag was designed in 1978 by an American artist, designer, and Vietnam War veteran named Gilbert Baker. Baker’s design has since become a global symbol of inclusion: “The different colors within the flag were meant to represent togetherness, since LGBT people come in all races, ages and genders, and rainbows are both natural and beautiful” (“Rainbow Flag”).

In her comment, Stella listed multiple neighboring towns that have already made this symbolic gesture of inclusion. Stella stated, “We could follow in the steps of our surrounding towns that have adopted a pride flag such as Atlantic Highlands, Matawan, Red Bank, Asbury Park, and more. If Middletown, the largest town in Monmouth County, flies this flag, we will set the tone for the few remaining towns and work to bring safety, awareness, and acceptance to our youth” (4 April 2022).

While some may argue that raising a pride flag may not seem like an effective mitigation measure against violence or discrimination, the ADL’s Pyramid of Hate shows us that a lack of acceptance due to biased attitudes is the foundation for other progressively worse outcomes, with acts of violence existing at the top, or most extreme end, of the pyramid. The lowest level of the pyramid is “biased attitudes,” and a failure to raise the pride flag in June during Pride Month, when many other towns are participating in a similar public display of inclusion, may be indicative of biased attitudes that persist in Middletown. According to the ADL, “If people or institutions treat behaviors on the lower levels [of the pyramid, such as biased attitudes] as being acceptable or ‘normal,’ it results in the behaviors at the next level becoming more accepted” (Pyramid of Hate).

Stella’s earlier point about safety is well-supported. Unfortunately, although it can be difficult to discuss, members of the LGBTQ+ community are often the victims of discrimination, harassment, and violence. Ignoring reliable statistical evidence because it makes us uncomfortable is antithetical to the basic utilitarian premise that undergirds a well-functioning democracy: The public must be informed if they are to create the best possible society for all people. Those who argue that members of the LGBTQ+ population are currently treated equally have not reviewed the actual evidence on the subject. For example, according to updated 2020 FBI crime statistics, “20% [of people who were on the receiving end of hate crimes] were victimized because of the offenders’ sexual-orientation bias” (FBI.gov). This statistic paints a clear picture of unequal treatment, as manifested in its most extreme form: acts of violence. A pride flag and other signals of inclusion at the community level make it less likely that people will be socialized to fear, dislike, or terrorize others simply because they are different.

Currently, members of the LGBTQ+ community are living in our neighborhood and working in our town; they are volunteering in our schools and are members of churches that prioritize love and acceptance. They are mothers, fathers, children, students, and friends. Like everyone, they perform many different important roles and functions in our community. Their identities are complex and multifaceted, extending far beyond gender and sexuality. They identify as members of different races, ethnicities, religious groups, etc. And all of these different facets of identity intersect and function in synergistic ways. According to current scholarship on social justice, “Intersectionality has been a widely applied framework in studying and addressing issues of discrimination ranging from gender, race, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation, and other identities. Intersectionality has also been applied within the context of reducing health disparities amongst socially disadvantaged groups through examining social factors that might cause such disparities. For example, homophobic and transphobic discrimination (either real or anticipated) from health practitioners has now emerged as a key factor in both precipitating health issues and lower rate of health-seeking in members of the LGBTIQ+ community. This fear has shown to be compounded in immigrant and asylum-seeking people who are also LGBTIQ+” (“Intersectionality”).

Frankie Stella, who is active at Middletown South in the Gender-Sexuality Alliance and the Diversity Club, recognizes the importance of validating the intersectional identities of her peers, as indicated by her public activism. Impressively, this seventeen-year-old has already had one community victory under her belt, which came when she coauthored a 2021 proclamation that “would be a commitment from the town to advocate against discrimination and support diversity” (“Middletown Students Ready for a Pride Flag”). Stella recounted last year’s victory in The Monmouth Voice: “In June, myself and a group of community members attended a township meeting where the proclamation I sent was read. It was a great first step, but unfortunately no pride flag was raised” (“Middletown Students Ready for a Pride Flag”).

In her recent public comment, Stella shared why this victory was incomplete: “Last year, around this time, the committee was gracious enough to adopt a proclamation for Pride Month that I assisted in penning, vowing to commit to the demonstration and celebration of Pride Month. While this was a great step for our town, it was only the first step. Project Pride has already secured funds through donation to raise a pride flag at Town Hall, at no cost to the taxpayers. Please consider this, not as a simple request, but as a plea by the 1100+ students and families that have signed this petition, and many community members that would support raising a pride flag for the month of June” (4 April 2022).

Stella’s quest illustrates her faith in a fundamental American value: All people should be free to peacefully express who they are without fear of discrimination or violence. Those who claim that any overt showing of support for the LGBTQ+ community violates their own personal or religious freedom would do well to remember a central value of all religions and compassionate communities: treat others with kindness. The flag, as it is understood by those in the LGBTQ+ community, remains a symbol of love and inclusion, and to suggest otherwise is a misinterpretation or purposeful distortion of its true meaning.

In a time when our public square is polluted with hate and ignorance, it’s important that we all practice the virtues of tolerance and kindness in honoring our differences. Raising a pride flag is not a call to change anyone; it is not a statement that devalues straight or cisgender people who have existed comfortably in the majority since our country was founded. Instead, the raising of a rainbow flag can be seen as a small act of kindness toward a community that has continually faced discrimination and violence. Affirming the diverse identities of Middletown residents that belong to marginalized groups will give them one less thing to worry about in a world that often seems hostile and chaotic. In the end, Stella’s campaign comes down to a basic question: Shouldn’t the identities of ALL people be valued? If you answered this question in the affirmative, you can sign Frankie Stella’s petition or contact the township committee to express your support for a pride flag in Middletown.