LGBTQ activists plant 350 transgender flags in Palm Springs, calling for Senate to pass Equality Act
Local LGVTQ rights activists came together in Palm Springs Friday to push for the US Senate and the president to pass the Equalty Act.
"I'ts time for this hatred and this violence to stop and it's time to have some real strength in the Senate to get our first civil rights bill, the Equality Act, signed into law," said activist Richard Noble.
The legislation would offer unprecedented guaranteed protections for LGBTQ people, including in housing, education, healthcare and religious rights.
Palm Springs was the first city in the nation to pass a resolution in support of the Equality Act back in 2016.
City leaders Friday said transgender people nationally right now are facing a barrage of attacks. "We are up against a huge fight," said Councilmember Geoff Kors.
State legisltures around the country are considering, or have already passed, a variety of bills targeting transgender youth on issues from medical care to participation in school sports.
Organizers said the number of transgender people murdered last year is well into the hundreds. Attendees planted 350 transgender pride flags across Frances Stevens Park in Palm Springs representing the lives lost.
"Having a symbol of 350 flags really humanizes that and it makes us see the magnitude of the numbers of people who have lost their lives to violence, especially trans people of color," said Eddie Ryenoso, executive director of Equality Business Alliance San Diego.
Noble, who organized the event, is known for walking across the country from 2011 to 2012 carrying a rainbow pride flag to bring visibility to LGBTQ issues.
He said President Biden pledging his support for LGBTQ Americans during his presidential address to a joint session of Congress last month was monumental for him. "It was a wonderful moment in my life and for everybody that I'm representing here today," Noble said.
Thomi Clinton, CEO of the Transgender Health and Wellness Center in Palm Springs, said the display helps urge for violence against trans people to end. "We need to come together and fix and i think that we can agree violence is not the way," Clinton said.
The flags will remain up through the weekend in order to commemorate the birthday of well known LGBTQ crusader Harvey Milk.
