A proposal by Palm Desert Mayor Pro Tem Joe Pradetto to discontinue displaying banners including the Pride flag on City Hall has sparked intense backlash from the LGBTQ community and a state legislator, with leaders calling for immediate action to stop the measure.
Opposition to the proposal quickly spread online after it surfaced during a Thursday evening City Council meeting. Raymond Lafleur, a moderator of the Gay Men of Palm Springs Facebook group, framed the move as part of a broader national trend targeting LGBTQ visibility.
“Another gut punch to our gay community in the ongoing nationwide effort to erase us,” Lafleur wrote. “I just never imagined that with all the erasing of the gay community we are seeing across the country that we’d be seeing it right at our doorstep.”
Lafleur repeatedly urged Palm Desert residents to contact their council members before the next meeting, stressing the local impact of the proposal.
“Several hundred members of this group live in Palm Desert. We need your support to keep this from happening,” he wrote, warning against allowing the city to “become a hotbed of hostility.”
Assemblymember Greg Wallis, who represents the area, denounced Pradetto's proposal in a statement on Saturday.
"This proposal is a slap in the face to LGBTQ+ residents of Palm Desert and the entire Coachella Valley," Wallis said in a news release. "At a time when LGBTQ+ Americans face increasing attacks on their rights and dignity across the nation, our local leaders should be standing up for inclusion, not tearing down symbols of acceptance and equality."
Wallis noted that the Coachella Valley has a vibrant LGBTQ community and a proud history of championing equality, making Pradetto's proposal particularly disappointing.
The Pride Flag hangs at Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs in November as Pride Week kicked off in that city. (File photo)
"Pride Month recognition doesn't create division—it affirms that every resident deserves to be celebrated and respected," Wallis said. "Removing these symbols sends the harmful message that some members of our community matter less than others."
Wallis called on the Palm Desert City Council to reject Pradetto's proposal and maintain the city's commitment to recognizing and celebrating all residents. "I urge the Palm Desert City Council to stand on the right side of history and vote down this divisive proposal," he said.
Lafleur also questioned Pradetto’s priorities, noting the mayor pro tem campaigned on public safety and fiscal stability. “Yet, here he is with his first major initiative — erase the gays,” Lafleur wrote, while raising concerns that the move could set a precedent for rolling back recognition of other cultural or heritage observances.
Those concerns were echoed by dozens of commenters. Many expressed anger, disappointment, and fear that the proposal signals a broader retreat from inclusion. Several pledged to boycott Palm Desert businesses — particularly along El Paseo — if the policy change advances, framing economic pressure as a way to force reconsideration.
The proposal itself emerged during Thursday’s City Council meeting, when Pradetto asked staff to return with two related items for future consideration.
The first would rescind Resolution 24-38, adopted in June 2024, which formally established how Palm Desert recognizes LGBTQ Pride Month.
That resolution directed the city to issue an annual Pride Month proclamation, include Pride in its social media commemorations, participate in local Pride events, and display a commemorative banner at City Hall each November to coincide with local Pride celebrations. The resolution was intended to memorialize those practices as ongoing city policy rather than one-time gestures.
"Removing these symbols sends the harmful message that some members of our community matter less than others."
The second request would revisit Resolution 2018-09, the city’s longstanding diversity and inclusion resolution adopted in 2018.
That measure affirms Palm Desert’s commitment to welcoming residents and visitors of all backgrounds and explicitly states that the city does not tolerate discrimination, harassment, or hate based on characteristics including sexual orientation and gender identity. It also commits the city to protecting civil rights and promoting equal treatment through its policies and operations.
Pradetto framed his request around what he described as a philosophy of “personal liberty, government neutrality,” likening the city’s role to that of a referee that enforces fair rules without singling out specific groups for symbolic recognition.
“We don’t need a special banner to state our support for the LGBT community, because we have Resolution 2018-09,” Pradetto said during the meeting, pointing to the city’s existing diversity policy as sufficient evidence of inclusion.
According to Pradetto, relying on a broad, standing commitment to diversity — rather than banners tied to specific causes — ensures equal treatment while avoiding what he views as selective recognition by the city.
No formal action was taken at the meeting, and any proposed changes would return to the City Council at a future date for discussion and possible approval.