Northport Mayor Removes Pride Flags in Veterans Banner Row

A Long Island mayor has ordered the removal of Pride flags from a village park after a controversy erupted over their display alongside banners honoring local military veterans, sparking a community debate about balancing LGBTQ+ recognition with military tributes.

Northport Mayor Donna Koch said she had the Pride flags removed from lamp posts in Northport Village Park after the Northport American Legion objected to the flags being displayed above “Hometown Heroes” veterans tribute banners. The decision, made on June 12, prompted a packed village board meeting four days later and ultimately led to a compromise that separates the displays onto different lamp posts.

Background

Pride flags have been flown in Northport Village Park during June for the past four years without incident, according to CBS News. However, 2026 marked the first year the American Legion’s “Hometown Heroes” veterans tribute banner program was introduced in the park, creating a physical space conflict on shared lamp posts.

The Controversy

On June 9, American Legion Commander William McKenna sent a letter to Mayor Koch and the village board expressing concerns. In an interview with ABC7 Eyewitness News, McKenna stated: “They were putting the pride banners above my veterans, and that does not work, sorry.” He added, “If you put a pride flag by one of my veterans, I’m taking every one of them down.”

McKenna’s letter emphasized that the concern was not with the Pride flags themselves but with their placement. “Many veterans and families feel that placing another banner above the veterans’ banners diminishes the recognition and prominence that was originally intended for those who served our country,” he wrote.

Koch removed the flags on June 12. “I had the Pride flags removed. It had nothing to do with my feelings about the Pride community. I support them 100%. I also support our veterans,” she said, according to News12 Long Island.

Jeff Cusick, treasurer of Northport Pridefest, called the situation “very offensive” and alleged that the expanded veterans program was used to push back against the LGBTQ+ community. “We believe it’s a point to leverage patriotism for discrimination against us,” Cusick told CBS News.

The Compromise

At a packed village board meeting on June 16 attended by approximately 90 people, Koch announced a compromise: Pride flags and veterans banners would now be displayed on separate lamp posts. The village also agreed to pay for hardware to hang Pride flags on unused flagpoles at Village Hall.

“I take full responsibility for the decision I made on Friday. I did not make it lightly,” Koch said at the meeting, as reported by Newsday. “When one agrees with both sides as I do, it is a difficult position to mediate.”

However, the mayor also designated certain locations where Pride flags would not be permitted, including the village dock and the front of Village Hall. Cusick criticized this as an attempt to hide the flags, telling the board: “We are community members. We are not second-class citizens. We will not be hidden.”

Community Reactions

Army veteran Bruce Adams, whose banner was featured in the Hometown Heroes program, expressed a desire for a solution that respects both groups. “Where we can have the veterans’ photographs up and yet we can still have the Pride flags shown,” he told News12.

Shelby LaChance, a village resident and military veteran who is also a member of the LGBTQ+ community, pushed back against the American Legion’s position. “The American Legion doesn’t speak for all of us veterans,” she said at the board meeting, according to Newsday.

Meanwhile, Koch confirmed that a man walked into the Northport Police Department and threatened to remove all Pride flags. She stated that any such action would be charged as a hate crime.

Broader Context

The Northport controversy reflects a wider national debate about the display of Pride flags on public property. Similar disputes have occurred in communities across the country, from Massachusetts to Washington state, as local governments navigate the balance between recognizing different community groups within shared public spaces.

What’s Next

The compromise is currently in place for the remainder of Pride Month, but questions remain about whether a permanent policy will be established for future years. The American Legion’s “Hometown Heroes” program holds rights to the lamp posts from May through November, leaving unresolved questions about how the village will accommodate both displays in the long term.

Fox News reported that Pridefest organizers plan to hang the removed flags on vacant flagpoles at Village Hall, with the village covering the cost of necessary hardware.