NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) — Rainbow flags outside of Stonewall National Monument in celebration of the LGBTQ+ community were vandalized on Thursday night, right in the middle of Pride month.
The flags were removed from Christopher Park on Christopher Street in Greenwich Village, across from the historic Stonewall Inn, at 8 p.m. on Thursday. Police said that the vandalism was discovered Friday morning at 7:55 a.m., and an investigation is ongoing,
New York City Council Member Erik Bottcher posted photos of the vandalism at Stonewall on X, where he wrote that “Last night, bigots vandalized the Stonewall National Monument, snapping flag sticks & stealing 3/4 of the flags around the [perimeter] of the park.”
Bottcher told 1010 WINS/WCBS 880 that he received a text message on Friday morning from the caretaker of the monument, and he had told the council member that the vandals broke the Pride flag sticks and scaled the fence to steal about 160 flags from both inside and outside of Christopher Park.
“When they’re broken off the fence it’s an obvious sign of vandalism,” Steven Menendez told 1010 WINS/WCBS 880. “Just a pity, you know. Everyone just wants to enjoy life, like, this is ridiculous.” Menendez has been putting up the Pride flags outside of Christopher Park for eight years.
“Anyone who’s considering performing any act of hate against any community, including the LGBTQ community, they should know that they will be apprehended, they will be held accountable,” Bottcher said. “If you intend to strike fear into our community, if you try to intimidate our community, you will not succeed, you will fail.”
Bottcher has been in contact with the captain of the NYPD's 6th Precinct, a police report has been filed and an investigation is underway. Law enforcement will canvass all the surveillance footage around the park and police are investigating the vandalism as a possible bias incident.
A U.S. Park Police car is keeping an eye on the national monument, as this is the second year in a row that vandals have disrupted the Pride decorations at Christopher Park.
“We’ll just keep an eye on it, and if they come down, we’ll put them up again. We’re warriors, you know," Jamila Dphrepaulezz, of the Christopher Park Alliance, said.
In the early hours of June 28, 1969, an uprising against police at The Stonewall Inn served as a key turning point in the movement for LGBTQ+ civil rights. The initial riot led to six days of demonstrations and conflicts with police outside the bar and in Christopher Park. One year later, on June 28, 1970, the first Pride parade was held to commemorate the uprising.
The National Park Service, which manages the National Stonewall Monument, did not immediately respond to 1010 WINS/WCBS 880’s request for comment.
“New York City shines with pride as the birthplace of the modern LGBTQ+ movement, which started 55 years ago at the Stonewall Inn,” Mayor Eric Adams said in a statement following the vandalism. “Our administration wants every member of our LGBTQ+ community to know: we are here for you and our administration will always have your back.”
On Thursday night, the mayor held a Pride celebration of the LGBTQ+ community at Gracie Mansion. "So proud to be with our LGBTQ+ community at Gracie Mansion to remind them that the City of Stonewall remains unwavering in our commitment to equality and being a safe haven for all," Adams wrote in commemoration of the event.
Adams said that he will work in close coordination with the NYPD "to identify and hold accountable whoever committed [the] heinous act" at Stonewall.
“As we speak, the flags are being put back. There are volunteers who take care of the monument, who put the flags up, every year, who replenish the flags throughout the month,” Bottcher said. “And that’s what our community does. When we’re attacked, we come back right away.”
Bottcher is an openly gay public servant hailing from a small town in the Adirondacks who began his career in 2009 as the LGBTQ & HIV/AIDS Community Liaison in the City Council’s community outreach unit. He was elected to the council in 2021 and represents District 3 (Greenwich Village, Chelsea, Hell’s Kitchen, Hudson Square, Flatiron, Times Square, the Theater District, and the Garment District).
The council member also brought attention to the burning of Pride decorations on 22nd Street in Chelsea in his X post, providing photos and videos of charred flag pieces.
“Anyone who thinks this will intimidate our community is badly mistaken,” Bottcher said.
Madison Petta contributed to this report.