Pride flag raised last week in celebration of Pride Month was removed twice; police report filed

The Pride Flag hung by the County of Maui as a celebration of national June Pride Month was illegally removed twice after it was raised during a Proclamation and flag ceremony last week outside the County building, organization leaders with Aloha Maui Pride said.

The County filed two police reports and is continuing its ongoing investigation, the organization reports.

On June 5, the Aloha Maui Pride organization, Mayor Bissen, County of Maui representatives, attendees, and the Maui police chief gathered to officially proclaim June as Pride Month.

The County proclamation stated, “Aloha Pride Month recognizes the rights of all people — regardless of age, gender identity, race, color, religion, marital status, national origin, sexual orientation, or physical challenges — to experience equality and freedom from discrimination.”

“The Pride Flag that was taken down is the tangible embodiment of that statement,” organization leaders said.

The colors of the Pride Flag represent the diversity of the LGBTQ+ community. The most popular version of the flag is the Rainbow Flag with six stripes that was first introduced in 1979 in San Francisco. The new Progressive Pride Flag adds additional colors to represent marginalized people of color, trans people, those with HIV/AIDS, and those who were lost.

Last week, Aloha Maui Pride had several community events culminating with their first street festival in downtown Wailuku on June 8 where participants came together to celebrate and watch live local performers.

Organization leaders thanked Maui Mayor Richard Bissen, the County of Maui and all relevant departments for making this a priority and for ensuring that the flag stays up for the remainder of June.