Pride flag raised in Stockton for sixth year despite mayor's no vote
STOCKTON — The pride flag is now flying over the city of Stockton after a 6-1 vote in the city council to raise it for the last week of Pride Month.
This is the sixth year the city has raised the pride flag, but the May 14 vote still faced some opposition with Mayor Kevin Lincoln being the only no vote.
Advocates always welcome the support and think more could be done from one of the most diverse cities in the world.
"It's really important for us to have that go up," Jonathan Lopez said.
Lopez is with the San Joaquin Pride Center and has seen the pride flag fly over Stockton almost every year since he's been an advocate.
"It leaves us with that kind of hope, I guess, is that there will be more understanding," he said. "It'll mean more to the people on the other side making the decisions."
For Lopez, it's a decision he'll keep in mind come November with Lincoln running for Congress as a Republican.
"It says, 'Go out and vote,' " he said. "It says that these kinds of issues and topics really speak to who is in charge."
We reached out to Mayor Lincoln for comment Tuesday, but he was out of town. However, during the city council meeting, he gave his reasoning for voting no.
"As the flag display policy stands, I do not believe it is appropriate to display any flag as an expression of the city's official speech," he said.
The current flag policy states that any commemorative flag outside official government flags can stand for one week and that's it.
So why is the city waiting until the last week of Pride Month to raise the flag?
The Central Valley Gender Health & Wellness Center sponsored the flag-raising for the city. They say that to keep with tradition, they raise the flag at the end of Pride Month to coincide with Stonewall Day on June 28.
"It was a very tight vote, a 4-3 vote last year. This year, it was a 6-1 vote," Councilmember Dan Wright said. "It's simply a statement of inclusion. This is our community."
The flag will come down on July 1.