The State Department has banned U.S. embassies from flying the rainbow flag during LGBTQ Pride Month, according to diplomats in Israel, Germany, Brazil, and Latvia.
NBC News reports: “The denials to U.S. embassies have come from the office of the State Department's undersecretary for management, Brian Bulatao, a longtime associate of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo who also worked for him at the CIA. Under State Department policy, embassies that want to fly the flag on their flagpoles are expected to obtain permission from Washington.”
NBC News adds: “During the Obama administration, the government granted blanket permission to embassies overseas to fly the pride flag during June. This year, U.S. diplomats said, embassies were told they can display the pride flag in other places, including inside embassies, but that requests to fly it on the flagpole must be specifically approved. No approvals have been granted.”
The Trump administration has claimed that it is leading the charge to decriminalize homosexuality worldwide. This news certainly flies in the face of that lie.
