Towamencin Township Municipal Center. Photo by James Short.
Democrat Supervisor Joyce Snyder pushed for a policy that would be open and welcoming to all people
Towamencin Township Supervisors voted 3-2 on Thursday to permit its solicitor to draft and advertise a proposed township flag ordinance, which will limit flags flown to governmental flags only, a proposal that went against the original intention of Supervisor Joyce Snyder.
The two dissenters in the vote were Democrats Snyder, and Supervisor Kofi Osei, who attended remotely.
Supervisors Chairman Chuck Wilson said Snyder requested a discussion regarding a township flag policy, and thus, Solicitor Robert Iannozzi Jr. researched other municipalities to compare existing flag policies.
“My idea,” Snyder said, “was, I wanted to indicate that Towamencin is an open and welcoming community to all; I want very much for Towamencin to be a welcoming community for all. That was basically the reason why I wanted to have this conversation.”
Iannozzi said he sampled 12 of 25 second-class townships in Montgomery County; he did not announce the 12 municipalities publicly.
“Our sampling,” he said, “sought to confirm flags that are displayed, whether a flag display ordinance resolution or policy was in place, and how a flag display request would be handled by that particular township.”
The sampling revealed the following:
Regarding communities with flag ordinances and resolutions, Iannozzi said nine out of 12 either had a flag display ordinance or resolution, two out of 12 had a flag display resolution or proclamation limited to commemorating Pride Month and the display of the Pride flag for that month, and one municipality had a flag display policy.
“On the question as to how they would handle flag display requests, six out of 12 would decline such requests, five out of 12 would respond per board discretion, and one out of 12 would respond per board direction in accord with the board’s policy,” Iannozzi said.
After a long pause, Snyder said she hoped that the township, as neighbors, could be open and welcoming to all.
“I want that (policy) to include the Pride flag because there are still people out there who would rather be dead than come out, and I want them to know that we in Towamencin don’t feel that way,” Snyder said.
“We don’t want you to die. We want you to be happy with whoever you are,” Snyder continued. “In my opinion, there’s not a lot of downside to doing that.”
Snyder said she understood that if Towamencin flies the Pride flag, then “perhaps we also need to fly the Black Lives Matter flag, or the POW flag, which I have no problem flying.”
“I never ever, ever intended to fly any flag as an alternative to the U.S. flag,” she said. “It was always an ‘in addition to’ the U.S. flag, and the State flag, and the County flag. Towamencin doesn’t have a flag. If we did, I’d have that flying.”
Snyder asked her colleagues to join her in representing as great as group as they possibly could, and not exclude anyone.
“I would like to see an ordinance that restricts to the flags that are in the Pennsylvania Flag Code: the U.S. flag, the Commonwealth flag, the County flag, and the municipal flag, if and when we get one,” said Wilson. “We’re all Americans, we’re all Pennsylvanians, we’re all Montgomery Countians, we’re all Towamencin, that’s something that we can all rally around.”
Wilson said if you start introducing other flags, then how do you say no to something that comes along that supervisors may all find not in good taste?
“I agree that could certainly be an issue, which would be why I would encourage us to come up with a policy that addresses that,” Snyder said. “I would think it would be something as simple as the board has to vote on whatever flag is requested by the people.”
“I wasn’t able to finish there, but what I was going to say was,” Wilson said, “since we’re all united around those flags, to add anything else to that, anything you can possibly think of, only serves to be divisive in my opinion, because no one can pick an issue with flying those flags.”
Wilson said it also puts the township in danger of litigation.
“No matter what other flag you want to fly, someone’s going to have an issue with it. So, not only does it put us in a legal position where we have to fly it, but it also, in my opinion, to fly anything else is not positive – it creates division by separating us,” Wilson said.
Supervisor Laura Smith said she went into the discussion with a very open mind because Towamencin is a very open community and welcoming.
“I came into this with that in my heart … but as we progressed, it became very obvious, or maybe not obvious, but clear, to me that flying anything but the U.S. flag, the Pennsylvania flag, the County flag, and the Towamencin flag, opens us up to litigation,” Smith said. “As soon as we flag this flag for this group, if we don’t do it for the next group – litigation.”
Smith said it is who we are today, sadly.
“Our world today is, if you don’t do it my way, and if I don’t like the way you think, then I’m going to cancel you, I’m going to sue you, I’m going to make your life hell,” Smith said. “Unfortunately, that’s where we are, and I don’t like that that’s where we are and we have to take actions to mitigate any possible litigation.”
“I feel like the whole premise of having any amount of Pride gets watered down because it’s going to be constantly flying a new flag,” she said. “What’s todays flavor? And I’d rather celebrate Pride at my house, fly a flag, go to parades, and support my friends in the LGBTQ community, and celebrate them and support them, than take our township and put it through any amount of litigation.”
Supervisor Kristin Warner said Snyder had a good heart in wanting to have the policy.
“It kind of makes me sad that there’s people in our society that don’t feel like this flag unites us,” said Warner, pointing to the American flag behind her seat, “because I grew up with it uniting us. We are a melting pot in this country; we have always been accepting of every single culture, around the world, coming in, sharing their culture with us, and becoming a part of our one United States.”
Warner said Towamencin is already inclusive and welcoming by flying the American flag.
“I think it would become cumbersome to even, without litigation, begin an issue to try to embrace each and every good cause that comes along that says ‘I want you to promote me or make me feel like you’re concerned for my group,’” Warner said. “I’m a ‘no’ to flying any additional flags than the ones that have represented us for my entire lifetime.”
Osei said the policy was “low stakes,” and there is not too much of an issue whether the township continues to fly governmental flags or include other flags.
“To make the discussion a bit more generic, we all are elected to represent the will of our constituents, and to that extent, the United States does have a very strong First Amendment, which is a right to political free speech,” Osei said. “We also started this country through a Revolutionary War, so to that extent to say we must only fly the U.S. flag, I think is a bit un-American. I love this country and I’m glad to fly our own flag.”
Osei said he would defend other peoples’ rights to not like aspects of our country or there could be a situation where “we disagree with the U.S. government as a township.”
“I believe we would have our right to not fly the flag in that scenario,” he said. “In respect to the Pride flag, I would generally be in favor of flying it.”
He said an Upper Gwynedd Township commissioner and him talked about Upper Gwynedd’s Pride flag display policy. Upper Gwynedd, he said, has a separate flagpole so the American flag stands alone.
“Then, any additional flag would be on the second pole, which is lower,” Osei said. “So, if we do get to a point where we’re flying another flag, I think having another pole is where I’d like to see that policy go.”
When Wilson asked for a motion to authorize Iannozzi to prepare and advertise a proposed flag ordinance that restricts flags to government flags, Snyder said it was not necessary.
“I truly don’t feel like it’s necessary that we create an ordinance around this,” she said. “There doesn’t need to be any change. I’d hate to spend taxpayers’ money to have Mr. Iannozzi create an ordinance when there’s not going to be any change to what we’re already doing.”
Wilson argued an ordinance would put the policy on record. As of now, he said, he is not sure where any resident would even go to find flag policies, other than under personnel or police department rules.
Smith told Snyder the policy allows supervisors to point to an ordinance on record when they are challenged in the future by residents or groups.
Residents also had a say on the flag policy, during the public comment period at the start of the meeting.
Ken Stout emailed supervisors his comment, writing that he “did not see any need for any other flag, especially with the possibility of a fanatic group that wants to hang a disruptive flag.”
Resident Paul Andrews commented via email that, since the flag policy referendum put up by a group of conservative residents did not meet the signature threshold under the Home Rule Charter rules, it is now up to the board to decide if they want a flag policy for township properties.
“If you want to take the easy road,” wrote Andrews, “simply allow the U.S. flag, right-side up please, the Pennsylvania State flag, and the Montgomery County flag. If you would like to be slightly more open, you could allow other flags, in addition to the U.S. flag, with the caveat being the flags must not be for any political candidate, party or movement, nor any hate groups or defunct nations.”
“We can allow flags in support of positive groups or causes, such as POW or autism or Gay Pride, or Black Lives Matter, that are not inherently political, with board approval of course,” wrote Andrews.
