After Western Standard broke the story of the raising of the Palestinian flag at Calgary's Municipal Plaza on Nov. 30 and after having numerous complaints, Mayor Jeromy Farkas has responded.
"The City of Calgary’s longstanding Flag Policy allows citizens to request the raising of national flags from countries officially recognized by the Government of Canada, on their designated national days." said Farkas in a statement.
"This is why the Israeli flag is raised each year on May 14, Israel’s Independence Day. With Canada’s recent official recognition of Palestine, the policy now permits the Palestinian flag to be raised on November 15, the National Day of Palestine."
During the previous council's time in office, a request was approved to have the Palestinian flag raised on Nov. 30, but that has changed.
"After further review, this was corrected to November 15 to align with the policy and the proper national date," said Farkas, adding, "City Council does not have legal authority to determine which countries Canada recognizes. Under our existing policy, any national flag request that meets the criteria must be considered equally."
"However, over the past several days, Calgarians from many communities have reached out with serious concerns about how national flag-raisings, of any country, can unintentionally heighten tensions here at home. These events, even when well-intentioned, increasingly risk becoming flashpoints for conflict and for the alarming rise in antisemitism and Islamophobia we are seeing in our city."
Farkas said Calgary and Calgary City Hall must be safe and welcoming spaces for everyone.
"City Hall must be a place that brings people together. National flags, particularly during times of global conflict, can have the opposite effect: instead of creating unity, they can create division, escalate emotions, and make some Calgarians feel unsafe in a place that belongs to all of us," he said.
"For that reason, I will bring forward an urgent Notice of Motion at next week’s City Council meeting to amend the Flag Policy so that national flags will no longer be raised at City Hall through this request process. This change would apply equally to all countries."
"The flag raising event on November 15, 2025 as approved by the previous Council policy, will proceed, with the same requirements as all such events: it must be conducted respectfully, safely, and with an unequivocal rejection of hatred in any form."
"Calgary is home to people from every corner of the world. Our commitment is to ensure City Hall remains a place of unity and safety for everyone. I will continue to listen to all Calgarians and work to ensure our public spaces reflect the values of a strong, proud, and welcoming city."
For the moment, the Farkas notice of motion next week will apply only to national flags.
