From June 25 to July 1, Stockton will display a commemorative Pride flag in front of city hall.
Following a 6-to-1 vote at the May 14 Stockton City Council meeting, the flag will be raised for the sixth consecutive year in honor of Pride Month, which is celebrated each June.
The multicolored flag is recognized around the world as a symbol of pride and the persistence of the LGBTQ+ community in the face of discrimination and anti-LGBTQ+ legislation . In 2023, lawmakers in 46 states introduced more than 650 anti-LGBTQ+ bills , a record number, according to a report by the Movement Advancement Project.
Mayor Kevin Lincoln — who is running as a Republican in the general election for Congress in California's 9th Congressional District — cast the lone dissenting vote. District 1 Councilwoman Michele Padilla and District 3 Councilman Michael Blower, who both voted against raising the flag last year, flipped their votes to 'yes' this time around.
Padilla said she received phone calls and texts from constituents who wanted to speak to her about the flag and her vote.
"Within our city, within our state, we're really at a time of division. Not only do I represent my district's voice, but it is also my duty to promote inclusivity," Padilla said. "I would be a hypocrite if I didn't say I'm a teacher and on a daily basis I'm always saying, 'You need to include him,' 'You need to let them participate,' and even though that might not be the same as a flag, it still applies to inclusivity."
An issue of concern that was discussed by council members is the city's flag display policy, which Lincoln said is "not clear" and "not equitable."
"We talked about this last year, in terms of it being reviewed by the (legislation) committee, and I think there's a consensus on this dais with regards to that being amended and updated, and corrected," Lincoln said.
The current policy allows flags to be flown on city flagpoles for no longer than seven continuous days. It also says the city's flagpoles are "not intended to serve as a forum for free expression by the public," and the city council can only consider a request to fly a commemorative flag if the request is made by a council member.
The policy limits which flags can be displayed in front of city hall. Flags that can be raised include the United States flag, the State of California flag, the city's flag, sister city flags, and commemorative flags.
Commemorative flags are defined in the policy as "any flag which identifies with a specific date, historical event, cause, nation or group of people, whereby the city honors or commemorates the date, event, cause, nation or people by flying the flag."
District 4 Councilwoman Susan Lenz said raising the Pride flag shouldn't have to be voted on by the city council every year. She was in support of reworking the policy to allow the flag to be raised each June without a vote required.
Many audience members clapped in support of the councilwoman's statement.
Blower, who serves as chair of the legislation committee, said the committee would expedite the process of reviewing the flag display policy.
"Every item that we do look at takes staff time," Blower said. "They look at it and come back to us, but we've heard and like I said, that has been a goal of mine ... that this year we would get the council policy updated and fixed in the areas that I think it needs fixing."
Record reporter Hannah Workman covers news in Stockton and San Joaquin County. She can be reached at hworkman@recordnet.com or on X, formerly Twitter, @byhannahworkman. Support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at https://www.recordnet.com/subscribenow .
This article originally appeared on The Record: Pride flag in Stockton to fly again, despite Mayor Kevin Lincoln voting against it
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