“We need to think of our city as a whole. Westminster became the latest city to decide against flying the flag at city hall, with city council members voting against flying the flag at the June 22 meeting.Ĭouncilman Carlos Manzo voted in support and Councilman Tai Do abstained from voting, while the rest of the council voted against the motion. “As a member of the LGBTQ+ community, I am incredibly sad to say it is not the first time I’ve heard these tired old slurs against us and our allies, but it was incredibly hard to hear in person.” “This display of casual bigotry and downright lies was, frankly, disgusting,” said Buczacki, who was at both meetings.
Wade’s faced some pushback - and rejection - from the local community.Īt both meetings on May 26 and June 9, multiple residents misgendered Wade and used religion as the reasoning against celebrating Pride Month in any capacity. “We aren’t in the closet in the way we once were.” Stephanie Wade, a board representative from Lavender Democrats OC, a political group that focuses on LGBTQ+ issues in Orange County “I think the city council is trying to make it go away by ignoring it, but I think it’s going to come to the floor because there are lots of LGBT people who live in Rancho Santa Margarita and we have lots of allies,” Wade said. Wade also said flying the flag is a simple, easy way to send a message of support.Īlthough the flag item hasn’t appeared on an agenda for the Rancho Margarita City Council, Wade said the effort is spurring community discussion about the issue. “To have the government fly the Pride Flag is a powerful symbol to show the community that the government stands behind LGBT people.” “LGBT people have historically been the subject of great discrimition, often from the government itself,” Wade told Voice of OC. Wade is also a former Marine and openly identifies as a transgender woman. “We have found ourselves up against not only a city council that refuses to even entertain the idea of discussing flying the Pride Flag in an official capacity, but also dealing with some residents who represent a more narrow-minded idea of what the LGBTQ+ community is asking for when we fly this flag.” Maribeth Buczacki, a Rancho Santa Margarita resident who identifies as bisexual and created the petitionĪt the May 26 City Council meeting, Stephanie Wade, a board representative from Lavender Democrats OC, a political group that focuses on LGBTQ+ issues in Orange County, gave a public comment in support of flying the flag.
However, a discussion hasn’t appeared on the council’s agenda, despite many vocal residents demanding such an opportunity. Since then, small groups have met every Saturday to continue rallying in support of the Pride Flag and speakers have gathered at the past two city council meetings to voice their request. In Rancho Santa Margarita, 1,276 people signed an online petition and approximately 50 people rallied in front of city hall May 22 urging city officials to raise the flag. Other cities - including Rancho Santa Margarita, Westminster and Orange - decided against hoisting the flag. As More OC Cities Fly Pride Flag Each Year, Others Still Concerned it Could Divide Residents Close