"In the queer enclave of West Hollywood, some residents were furious at the sight of a Pride flag and a transgender flag lowered to half-staff to mourn Charlie Kirk's assassination. In the city of Los Angeles, an internal Fire Department memo saying flags should stay raised sparked conservative anger at Mayor Karen Bass. And in Huntington Beach, where MAGA politics are warmly received, officials pledged to honor Kirk's memory by keeping flags lowered for an additional week past the mourning period set by President Trump."
"The controversial right-wing commentator's slaying last Wednesday ruptured cultural fault lines across the country, exacerbating fears of political violence, triggering campaigns to punish those who responded crudely and prompting the president to escalate attacks on his foes. Amid the national maelstrom, Trump's unusual decision to order flags lowered to half-staff at public buildings to memorialize a private citizen has been a flash point at the municipal level."
"The fallout has exacerbated tensions in major cities and small towns, including in Southern California, as local officials chose whether to comply - and found wrath on either end of the decision. Kirk, 31, founder of the conservative youth organization Turning Point USA and a close Trump ally, was an incendiary figure. In life, he was lionized by the far right and castigated by many others for anti-immigrant, anti-LGBTQ+ and anti-Black remarks, among other offensive rhetoric."
Cities across Southern California and beyond clashed over lowering flags to mourn Charlie Kirk after President Trump ordered flags at public buildings to half-staff. West Hollywood lowered Pride and transgender flags, angering residents, while Los Angeles faced conservative criticism for keeping flags raised amid an internal Fire Department memo. Huntington Beach extended the flag-lowering for another week. Kirk's assassination intensified fears of political violence and provoked campaigns to penalize crude responses, while the flag order became a municipal flash point. Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA and a close Trump ally, drew praise from the far right and condemnation for anti-immigrant, anti-LGBTQ+, and racist rhetoric.
Read at Los Angeles Times
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]