Local activist Hassan Aoun (third from left) is escorted from the July 18 Dearborn City Council meeting by police officers, at the request of Council President Michael Sareini, after he continued to loudly and insistently ask the body to bring to the table and vote on a resolution banning flags other than the United States, Michigan, Dearborn and the POW/MIA flag on city property, to which the city council did not respond.
By SUE SUCHYTA
Times-Herald Newspapers
DEARBORN – When activist Hassan Aoun was unsuccessful in his attempt to convince the City Council to consider a flag-banning resolution during its July 18 meeting, his insistence led to his ouster.
Aoun brought a resolution to the council asking the body to ban from city property all flags other than the United States, Michigan, Dearborn and POW/MIA flags.
The resolution is similar to those recently adopted by Hamtramck and Livonia, and would ban not only the flags of other countries, but political flags, such as the rainbow flags supporting the LGBTQ+ community.
The wording of Hassan’s resolution contends that its aim is to maintain and confirm the city’s neutrality toward its residents by disallowing the special treatment of any group of people.
He asked the council to bring the resolution to the table and to take a role call vote on the proposal. However, none of the council members offered support to do so.
Aoun then said that the council was “disrespectful” to the community.
“You guys are the most mutest people I have ever seen in my life,” he said. “You just want to sit there and make me look stupid.”
Hassan continued to address the body loudly and insistently, and after disregarding warnings from Council President Michael Sareini to desist, he was escorted from the council chamber by police.
Local activist Hassan Aoun (left) speaks at the July 18 Dearborn City Council meeting, asking the body to bring to the table and vote on a resolution banning flags other than the United States, Michigan, Dearborn and the POW/MIA flag on city property, to which the city council did not respond.
As public comment time continued, attendees expressed support for and opposition to a flag ban.
Kim Stanton of Westland said it is not necessary for the city to fly flags for specific groups of people.
“The American flag covers all of us,” she said. “This way, we won’t have people arguing about flags if it is down in writing.”
Jackson Wagner of Dearborn said that Dearborn as a city has struggled in the past to welcome people of different backgrounds.
“I think a recurring theme in this city’s history, for better and for worse, is that we have really struggled to live up to this country’s principles and we have failed to fully embrace the diversity of this city,” he said. “We’ve come a long way, but Mayor (Orville) Hubbard, for many decades in the 20th century, is a shameful part of the city’s history.”
Wagner said the notion of reducing human beings who are born a certain way to mere ideologists is patently ridiculous.
“People like me – queer men – were rounded into concentration camps in Germany years ago and forced to wear pink triangles, murdered for who they were,” he said. “This isn’t an ideology. LGBTQ+ people have existed for all of human history.”
After allowing attendees to express their views during the meeting, Sareini said on July 21 that while the council allows public comment time at the beginning of each meeting, it is important to maintain order.
“We do not tolerate screaming and yelling during our meetings,” he said.
Councilmember Leslie Herrick said that while the body listens to and considers the comments of speakers who address them, the council prefers to study resolutions in advance of a meeting instead of introducing them as on-the-spot walk-on items.
“It is generally discussed during the public Committee of the Whole meeting prior to the regular city council meeting,” she said. “I believe all of the current council members respectfully follow this protocol because it gives all council members an opportunity to study the subject of the resolution, ask questions or make revisions to the draft before it is brought to a vote at a regular council meeting.”
State Rep. Erin Byrnes (D-15th District), who attended the July 18 council meeting, said the flag proposal was not neutral.
“The recent activity we have seen around banning pride flags on municipal property under the guise of neutrality is a right-wing farce,” she said. “These actions are anything but neutral and are designed to marginalize and promote inhuman treatment of the LGBTQ+ community. Dearborn is a city for all. I stand with and will always work to advance the rights of the LGBTQ+ community.”