Frometa rebukes mayor over pride comments

Mayor Mario Trujillo, city manager Roger Bradley and Councilwoman Claudia Frometa at the April 23, 2024 city council meeting.

DOWNEY — Councilwoman Claudia M. Frometa fired back at Mayor Mario Trujillo on Tuesday over his comments at a county Pride Flag raising last week, where he said his colleagues were “failing” Downey’s LGBTQ community.

Downey made headlines over its May 14 decision to implement a “neutral flag policy,” which bars the flying of any flag other than the federal, state, city, and prison of war flags on city facilities and flag poles.

The policy split the council 3-2, with Mayor Pro Tem Hector Sosa, and Councilwomen Dorothy Pemberton and Frometa in support.

Along with drawing the ire of the LGBTQ community, the move drew criticism from Downey’s higher representation, including Congressman Robert Garcia, Assemblywoman Blanca Pacheco, and Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn.

Hahn coordinated a Pride flag raising ceremony in response, held June 3 on county-owned property. At the ceremony, Trujillo said that his fellow council members who voted for the policy were “out of touch with your community” and “hiding behind neutrality.”

Frometa said she was “disappointed to see our own local governing body’s decision disrespected and disparaged in the media by county and local elected officials.”

“Contrary to what was reported in the Los Angeles media and our current mayor’s narrative, this council’s vote was not misguided. This council is not flexing its conservative majority, as we are a non-partisan council,” said Frometa. “I want to make it clear again, the policy decisions we make are with all residents of Downey in mind. This council unanimously voted to continue funding the Pride festival coming up in August, and we have also discussed flying the Pride flags down Downtown during the week of the Pride festival.

“For any individual to say we are anti LGBTQ community is incorrect.”

Trujillo responded by saying that “gay pride was not born out of a need to celebrate but our right to exist without persecution.”

“To the straight people in the audience, if you’re wondering why you don’t have a straight pride movement, you should be thankful you don’t need one,” said Trujillo. “The LGBTQ community has been historically marginalized in this country. It’s not something that we are proud of; we are working on that, improving on that as a country. But I do want to tell individuals who may have possible LGBT members in their family that this month may be a good month for you to let them know that you love them regardless of who they choose to love.”