A Michigan mayor defended his city council’s decision to bar Pride flags along with others from public property after facing backlash from the LGBTQ community.
The Hamtramck City Council unanimously voted in June to ban "any religious, ethnic, racial, political, or sexual orientation group flags." Only five flags are now allowed on public property: the U.S. flag, the Michigan flag, the Hamtramck flag, the Prisoner of War flag and a unique flag representing the nations from which many Hamtramck citizens hail from.
The issue caused contentious council meetings at the time, with critics saying the Pride flag was being targeted. The flag resolution, months later, is still considered an act of betrayal by LGBTQ citizens to the symbol of "diversity" they had hoped the city would uphold.
In a statement to FOX News Digital, Hamtramck Mayor Amer Ghalib argued that the decision was not focused on banning the Pride flag but rather on offering a neutral stance on political issues.
"The city council decided to stay neutral on such controversial issues. Public spaces and city properties are shared spaces among all residents and should not be used by special interest groups to promote their agenda. We just specified which flags to be allowed to fly on city properties: US flag, State, city and POW flags are allowed. Everything else is not. No other group complained except the LGBT, because everyone believes it's fair and just decision. The city treats and serves everyone equally, no discrimination or preferential treatment," Ghalib said.
He added, "I, as a mayor, as well as the city council don't represent all American Muslims, we just act on the best interest of our city and our residents. Muslims are diverse and hold different views about these issues, so why generalizing! I disagree with some Muslim elected officials in the same district or in neighboring cities. Acting as victims of American Muslims is an exaggerating response. We feel that we are being disrespected in the only Muslim majority city, where some political groups try to enforce their values on us and are not willing to compromise."
Ghalib’s comments referred to backlash from the LGBTQ community with some feeling betrayed by the all-Muslim Hamtramck City Council, in a city where approximately 40% of residents were born in foreign countries.
Former council member Catrina Stackpoole, who identifies as gay, was quoted by the Washington Post saying, "We welcomed you," adding, "We created nonprofits to help feed, clothe, find housing. We did everything we could to make your transition here easier, and this is how you repay us, by stabbing us in the back?"
Ghalib concluded, "Our city decision is legal and constitutional, and it satisfies the vast majority of our residents and that is how democracy works. In the meantime, we protect every minority and make sure they are well treated and served. We all belong to some minorities, and are subject to discrimination in one way of another, therefore we all need some support from the government and from each other. Showing support using city resources and properties to one group and ignoring the rest of the community is just going to create more problems to our city government."
When previously questioned about the vote in June, Ghalib denied that the flag restrictions were targeting the LGBTQ community.
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"We’re not targeting anybody," Ghalib said. "We are trying to close the door for other groups that could be extremist or racist."
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