The Pride flag won’t fly at Mission city hall again this year.
A motion from Coun. Ken Herar on Monday (June 17) to amend the city’s flag policy didn’t have a seconder, meaning there was no discussion or vote on the matter. Coun. Jag Gill was absent from the meeting.
The amendment would allow the Pride flag to fly at city hall during the annual Fraser Valley Pride Celebration.
The matter was raised by Herar before, but this time he was optimistic. Herar says he initially wasn't going to bring the motion back but checked with the Fraser Valley Youth Society (FVYS), which organizes the annual Pride event. The society supported bringing the motion forward.
“I was really hopeful that there would at least be a discussion on this matter,” Herar said.
Mission Mayor Paul Horn says he didn’t second the motion because it was already discussed exhaustively in the past.
“There really isn't anything new to discuss,” Horn said.
Horn says the city has been supporting Pride in other ways, including hosting the Fraser Valley Pride Festival, creating space for the Fraser Valley Youth Society, and flying the flag where more people go.
“I think that the whole idea of supporting Pride has been to increase diversity in our community – to expect people to leave space for others,” Horn said.
According to Horn, raising the flag on government flagpoles tends to create polarization, not increase understanding.
Earlier this month, the City of Mission changed its logo on social media for Pride month to reflect the Progress Pride Flag. The city also had a Pride-themed social media logo last June. Horn says it wasn’t a council decision.
“That's a different thing than the flag policy … the logo is not our official coat of arms or official flag,” Horn said.