Roughly a year since the Oak Bluffs select board voted to adopt a new flag policy, the discussion regarding raising non-federal flags on town property resurfaced.
After a few failed attempts to amend the flag policy to enhance inclusivity, select board member Emma Green-Beach shared the newest version of alternative policy at Tuesday’s board meeting, which would introduce a secondary, “ceremonial” flagpole.
The idea had been briefly floated last year by select board member Jason Balboni, though the board never moved in that direction.
Instead, the select board approved the adoption of a restrictive flag policy last May, prohibiting any flags aside from those approved by the select board — flags of the U.S., the commonwealth of Massachusetts, the town of Oak Bluffs, and official military and POW-MIA — from being raised on town property.
This came as a blow to members of the community who had been vigilantly advocating for the flying of the Progress Pride flag and Juneteenth flag last year in celebration of June’s Pride Month and Juneteenth.
The select board reluctantly agreed to temporarily fly the Progress Pride flag for 14 days last June, preceding the adoption of the policy; a subsequent request from the NAACP to fly the Juneteenth flag was later denied.
Citing concerns over potential litigation, the select board referred to a May 2022 ruling by the Supreme Court that the city of Boston was in violation of the First Amendment when it denied a request by a conservative activist group to fly a Christian flag outside City Hall (Shurtleff v. Boston).
But after the select board engaged the town’s legal advisors for assistance regarding the flag issue, town counsel Ron Rappaport clarified that the Boston ruling does not mean a restriction on raising third-party flags; rather it highlights the need for government entities to use their discretion.
Complementing the Supreme Court’s decision on Shurtleff v. Boston was a court’s opinion, written by Justice Stephen Breyer’s on behalf of court members.
“The government must be able to decide what to say and what not to say when it states an opinion, speaks for the community, formulates policies, or implements programs,” he wrote.
In a call with The Times following last year’s adoption of the Oak Bluffs flag policy, Rappaport said that the select board is free to “speak on the causes they choose,” and that flying a flag is considered free speech. When asked how that can come into play with such a restrictive policy, Rappaport said the town’s policy can be useful for when there is a request to fly a flag that is divisive to the community.
At Tuesday’s select board meeting, Oak Bluffs Business Association vice president and local business owner Sofie Green asked board members whether they’ve received requests to fly flags other than the Progress Pride and Juneteenth flags.
Town administrator Deborah Potter said the town had received “a couple” of informal requests, but declined to specify where those requests came from. None of those requests were made publicly in front of the select board.
Green asked the select board if the town had received complaints from residents about the temporary raising of the Progress Pride flag last year.
“Any written complaints? I don’t think I’ve personally received a written complaint,” select board member Jason Balboni said.
Board member Gail Barmakian confirmed that answer. “I did not see any,” she said.
Despite comments made by former select board member Brian Packish last year that the town had gotten requests from the community for other flags to be flown, in addition to receiving “hate email,” records later requested and obtained by The Times could not substantiate those claims.
Jenelle Gadowski, a member of the NAACP’s executive committee and LGBTQ committee chair, reminded the board of the local support garnered when first requesting that the Progress Pride flag be raised, including the leaders of the town’s emergency services.
“The Progress Pride flag highlights inclusivity and diversity,” she said, noting that political leaders like former state Gov. Charlie Baker, and former and current presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden, are in support of the flag.
Gadowski was followed by a number of other members of the public, offering similarly supportive testimony.
Select board member Emma Green-Beach said that unlike the Boston case, where the city “did not exercise their government speech properly,” Oak Bluffs as a town can choose what flags to raise on town property.
Installing a ceremonial flagpole could be a way to thread the needle between showing support of the town’s community and evading any potential pushback on – or from – town officials.
The purpose would be “to communicate the town’s recognition of the inclusivity and diversity of the community which it serves,” she said.
Town administrator Deborah Potter said the proposal for a secondary flagpole has “defects,” in that “it doesn’t specify a division between a regular flagpole and a ceremonial flagpole.”
She said there needs to be a clear definition of what “ceremonial” is. “Once [the board] votes one in, [the board’s] going to have a hard time, without a definition, denying any other flag for any other reason,” she said. It would require applications, she said.
Newly elected board member Dion Alley agreed, adding, “There’s no way you can limit who can apply.”
Green-Beach reiterated that what flags are flown would be up to the discretion of the select board, and not open to public input.
Newly elected select board member Tom Hallahan agreed, citing the Boston case that notes the ability for governments to have freedom of speech.
“These flags represent different groups of people, not just who they are, but their history,” he said. “They’re not just nylon blowing in the wind.”
Select board member Gail Barmakian said overall, she’s supportive of the idea of installing a ceremonial pole — the details of which are far from being hammered out.
“I’m a little old-fashioned,” she said, admitting that she was initially hesitant about third-party flags being flown at all on town property. “But it’s a sign of the times these days, that it is a statement, it is an expression,” she said. “For me, I need to step up to the times and see that it is an opportunity for expression … I welcome it.”
Per select board member Jason Balboni’s suggestion, the board ultimately decided to reach out to town counsel for further assistance on the issue.
In other news, after issuing request for proposals in early March, the select board voted to award Lawrence Lynch Corp. the construction contract for the North Bluff/Seaview Avenue project, which will include a new roundabout.
The board also voted to authorize the town administrator to execute a three-year lease for four electric vehicles for town employees for $51,695.
Meanwhile, Tuesday was the first select board meeting for newly elected Tom Hallahan and Dion Alley, replacing former board members Brian Packish and Ryan Ruley.
In a reorganization of the board structure, Emma Green-Beach and Gail Barmakian were voted chair and vice chair, respectively.
