Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Groups sue Trump administration over Pride flag removal at Stonewall
By
Giulia Heyward
Published Feb 17, 2026
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
TIMOTHY A.CLARY / AFP via Getty Images
By
Giulia Heyward
Published Feb 17, 2026
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Civil rights groups are suing the Trump administration after the National Park Service removed the official Pride flag from the Stonewall National Monument in Greenwich Village.
The federal lawsuit, filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, alleges the removal violates multiple federal laws and policies governing historic preservation and management of national monuments.
The litigation comes after the flag’s removal earlier this month from the West Village monument commemorating the 1969 uprising, widely considered the birth of the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement.
The National Park Service replaced the Pride flag with an American flag, saying it was complying with a new federal directive limiting which flags can be flown at national parks.
Civil rights groups and local officials, including Mayor Zohran Mamdani, denounced the federal government’s actions. Hundreds gathered outside the park last week as elected officials and activists raised an unofficial Pride flag at the site.
“The federal government is attempting to bully and intimidate the LGBTQ+ community the same way that it is attempting to bully and intimidate other minority communities,” state Sen. Erik Bottcher, who represents Manhattan’s Upper West Side, said in an interview. “We won't stand for it. This lawsuit is part of the effort to push back against injustice. We are not going to stop until we prevail.”
The suit, which was filed by the Gilbert Baker Foundation, Equality New York, Village Preservation and an individual plaintiff, asks a judge to vacate the removal decision and order the federal government to restore the official, NPS-sanctioned Pride flag.
The plaintiffs are represented by Lambda Legal and the Washington Litigation Group.
In the complaint, the plaintiffs argue the flag’s removal was “arbitrary and capricious” and based on a misreading of the Interior Department’s policies that they say expressly permit the display of flags that provide historical context at national monuments. The Pride flag, they argue, serves that function at Stonewall, the first national monument dedicated to LGBTQ+ history.
“The Park Service’s policies permit flying flags that provide historical context at monuments,” Alexander Kristofcak, lead counsel for the plaintiffs, said in a statement. “That is precisely what the Pride flag does.”
The lawsuit also alleges the agency violated the National Historic Preservation Act by failing to consult with state officials before removing the flag. It further argues that the decision contradicts the 2016 presidential proclamation establishing the monument, which directs the Park Service to preserve and interpret the site’s significance to the LGBTQ+ civil rights movement.
The complaint claims the administration has selectively enforced flag policies, noting that other non-agency flags, including Confederate flags at certain historic sites, have been permitted for interpretive purposes. The removal at Stonewall, the suit alleges, reflects animus toward the LGBTQ+ community.
“At worst, the government was motivated by animus toward the LGBTQ+ community,” the complaint states. “And at minimum, the government failed to follow the processes for a decision of this nature.”
Representatives for the Department of the Interior and the National Park Service did not immediately respond to requests for comment Tuesday.
Tagged
Politics
manhattan
new york city
Giulia Heyward
Giulia Heyward is a breaking news reporter on the Day-Of desk. She previously worked at NPR, as a breaking news reporter, and the New York Times, as a reporting fellow on the national desk. Her work has also appeared in CNN, The Atlantic and Politico. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or more securely on signal at 917-715-1458.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Dump truck driver hits and kills cyclist on 34th Street in Midtown, NYPD says
It's the latest in a string of hit-and-run deaths in the city in recent months.
By
Liam Quigley
Published Sep 28, 2026 at 4:15 p.m. ET
New ingredient mandated for Latin American kitchen, restaurant plates in NJ
The Garden State now requires that corn masa dough and flour made and sold in the state be fortified with folic acid.
By
Arya Sundaram
News
New ingredient mandated for Latin American kitchen, restaurant plates in NJ
The Garden State now requires that corn masa dough and flour made and sold in the state be fortified with folic acid.
By
Arya Sundaram
A Brooklyn jail cell filled with smoke. The emergency button failed, a lawyer said.
By
Samantha Max
Crews launch tunnel machines to dig first new Hudson River rail tunnels since 1910
By
Michael Sol Warren
NYC nor’easter dries up after weather service reports minor flooding
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .