Earlier this week, a photo of a large transgender pride flag hanging atop the famous face of El Capitan in Yosemite National Park made the rounds.
Reports shared that the 55-by-35-foot flag was hung by the group “Trans Is Natural,” a coalition of LGBTQ+ and ally climbers.
But one of those climbers might be a familiar face to those in the outdoorsy LGBTQ+ community: Drag queen Pattie Gonia.
“Some carry hate; we carry the largest trans pride flag to ever be flown in a national park,” Pattie Gonia said in a social media video after the fact.
They unfurled the flag on El Capitan, she added, “to prove a point: That trans is natural.”
A clip showed organizers signing the flag with sharpies, Pattie Gonia’s message reading: “Let this flag fly higher than hate.”
The action was a response to the Trump administration’s actions against transgender individuals, which includes excluding them from serving in the military, as well as attempts to ban trans athletes from competitive sports, deprive them of gender-affirming care on a federal level, and more.
It also comes after the Trump administration has targeted national parks and public lands, firing thousands of federal workers from agencies the National Park Service and U.S. Forest Service.
This has also included the attempt to wipe LGBTQ+ history from federal websites, including the removal of trans individuals from the Stonewall National Monument website.
“The Trump administration and transphobes would love to have you believe that being trans is unnatural,” Pattie Gonia continued. “But species that can transition sexes can be found on every continent and in every ocean on planet earth.”
In a statement for Trans Is Natural, she also added: “We’re done being polite about trans people’s existence. Call it a protest, call it a celebration — either way, it’s giving elevation to liberation.”
The efforts of the group is reminiscent of another similar move from February of this year, when activists hung an upside-down American flag over El Capitan after layoffs slashed the NPS workforce.
According to SF Gate, Yosemite park officials ordered the pride flag be taken down shortly after it made its debut — and it was.
Still, photos of the flag flying high have made their impact across social media, and activists are pleased with their efforts.
“The flag stands as a visual and spiritual anchor for all those who have been made to feel out of place in their bodies or in this country, and a steadfast reminder to allies to show up and make their solidarity loud,” Trans Is Natural organizers said in a statement.
“Trans existence is not up for debate,” SJ Joslin, another organizer with the group, added. “We are social workers, public servants, parents, and neighbors. Being trans is a natural, beautiful part of human and biological diversity. We can only make progress when we embrace diversity, not erase it.”
Header images courtesy of Pattie Gonia/Instagram
