Explaining the snags with the flags

Downtown Decorah flags Friday morning Sept. 22. (Driftless Multimedia photo by Roz Weis)

During a special meeting held Monday after the regular council meeting, City Council and City Staff discussed the vandalism that took place Saturday night and Sunday morning.  Council voted 6-1 to keep the LGBTQ+ flags, which were scheduled to be removed Monday, displayed through today as an act of solidarity with the entire community.  Per the Council’s vote and the city’s flag schedule and policy, the Pride flags were removed this morning, and in their place were hung American flags, Luther flags for Luther Parents’ Week, Decorah Vikings flags for Decorah High School Homecoming, and Norwegian flags for the Norwegian Ambassador Vesterheim visit. 

“The LBGTQ+ community was a target of a hate crime within our community. By leaving the flags up, we wanted to send a message that we are supportive of the LBGTQ+ community and all that the Pride Flag represents, including diversity and inclusivity …Hanging flags is a celebration, reminding us of the values we hold dear and the parts of our community that make us special. Here in Decorah, Love is more powerful than Hate and All are Welcome Here. This message is not more important than messages of how proud we are of our schools and all of their contributions that they make to our community, these messages have EQUAL value. However, just as sometimes we give a little more love to the child who is hurting, than to the one who is not … it doesn’t mean we love one child more, it just means that attention needs to be given to heal a heavy heart.” – Council member Emily Neal

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