A different kind of flag caused a bit of controversy over the Fourth of July weekend. It seems that when Carolina Beach, NC lifeguard Zach Hupp decided to fly a gay pride flag, some beachgoers got a little concerned.
According to Hupp, one beachgoer expressed his concern to another lifeguard. Hupp says:
?Pretty much immediately somebody complained. Told one of the other lifeguards that they thought that I, because I was flying that flag that I would only rescue gay people.? ?
You know us gays, we have to stick together. Even if that means letting someone drown. Note to those with self-imposed comprehension problems: That was sarcasm.
While it seems that at least one beach patron was worried about the flag’s meaning, the newcivilrightsmovement.com reports that it all started with a Facebook post to the town’s page. In the post, Gina Benton writes:
?I was on the North End today, with about 35 friends, when it was pointed out that Lifeguard Tower #37 was not only flying a yellow flag, but also a gay and lesbian flag. As a long-time resident, I understand the importance of the caution flags, utilized by the lifeguards, but any other flag I thought was prohibited. Being the Fourth of July, an American Flag would have been more appropriate. I don’t know how to explain this one to the tourists who asked us about it. Some knew exactly what type of flag it was, others wondered if it had anything to do with the ocean conditions. I hope that you can reply with a reasonable explanation.?
The town did indeed reply by posting:
?Thank you for your inquiry, Gina. It should not have happened and the issue has been addressed with that lifeguard.?
According to a WECT Channel 6 video report, Hupp was issued a warning and town officials made their policy on which flags can be flown from the stands more specific. Regarding the reason as to why he put the flag up, and all of the attention it has garnered, Hupp says:
?So I feel like, with that flag I would hope that everybody would feel welcome to come down to the beach, especially being near Freeman Park where it’s just filled with other flags that may scare people away?You know it wasn’t anything that I was trying to go against the town by any means. I’m honestly surprised that it became as big of a deal as it has.?
I honestly believe Hupp had no ill intentions when he put up his flag. I do agree though that any other flags other than swimming condition flags do not need to go up. Obviously for safety reasons. Really though, ?only rescue gay people?? You might want to be more concerned about the sharks.
Let’s just be thankful that a real flag victory was won yesterday, July 10, when the confederate flag came down from the Capitol grounds in Columbia, South Carolina.
Also, No?the ?if the Confederate flags have to come down, so do gay pride flags and others? argument does not work. The gay pride flag does not have a history of hate and treason. Don’t worry, we will have that argument soon enough.
