A federal judge ruled Monday that the Michigan city of Hamtramck may enforce a local ordinance that prohibits private groups from flying LGBTQ+ Pride flags on publicly owned property, dismissing a lawsuit that had challenged the policy.
U.S. District Judge David M. Lawson said the city's rule — which limits flags on municipal property to five specified designs, including the American and Michigan flags and flags "that represent the international character" of the community — does not violate the U.S. Constitution because it restricts all private flags rather than targeting particular viewpoints. Opponents of the policy had argued it infringed free-speech rights by singling out Pride displays.
The Pride flag had been displayed at city facilities in 2021 and 2022, prompting debate within the all-Muslim city council, some members of which said the symbol conflicted with their religious beliefs. The council voted in June 2023 to adopt a resolution restricting which flags could be flown on publicly owned poles and properties. The following month, two members of Hamtramck’s Human Relations Commission were removed from their positions after flying Pride flags on city property in violation of the new ordinance.
"This Council believes in fairness, neutrality towards our residents, and the rule of law, amongst other things for this community," Council member Khalil Refai said when those removals were announced. "We passed a resolution recently to do just that, and two of our sworn commissioners outright defied it, and did what they wanted."
Hamtramck officials have said the ordinance is intended to preserve neutrality on public property and to avoid conflicts among residents of diverse backgrounds. The city’s mayor, Amer Ghalib, who is a native of Yemen and was once nominated by President Donald Trump to serve as U.S. ambassador to Kuwait, said in 2023, "We’re not targeting anybody. We are trying to close the door for other groups that could be extremist or racist."
Businesses and private residents in Hamtramck remain free to fly Pride flags on private property, and the city’s policy applies only to municipally owned poles and facilities. According to U.S. Census Bureau figures cited by city officials, more than 40% of Hamtramck’s roughly 27,000 residents were born outside the United States, with many residents tracing their roots to Yemen and Bangladesh.
In dismissing the lawsuit, Lawson concluded the ordinance's blanket ban on private flags at public sites constituted a content-neutral regulation of government property and thus did not run afoul of constitutional protections as alleged by plaintiffs. The decision leaves intact the council’s June 2023 resolution and allows city officials to continue enforcing the restrictions on flags displayed on public property.
The case was brought by opponents who said the rule singled out LGBTQ+ speech; court records showed the judge examined whether the policy was evenhanded in its treatment of private messages displayed on public property. The ruling does not affect the ability of individuals and businesses to display Pride flags on their own private property, and it remains possible that other legal challenges could be mounted in the future.