A Somali flag that Buffalo, New York, city officials raised in Niagara Square earlier this week to celebrate the foreign country’s independence was cut down in the dead of night on Wednesday. The flag robbery took place one day after city officials canceled Buffalo’s Fourth of July fireworks celebration.
Buffalo Mayor Sean Ryan said “unknown vandals” removed the Somali flag at some point late on Wednesday night, according to Buffalo-Toronto Public Media. Ryan added that the Buffalo Police Department is investigating the incident. The Somali flag has been raised in Niagara Square for the past four years on July 1 to celebrate Somali Independence Day.
“Buffalo is a proud, diverse city, and our administration remains committed to honoring and celebrating the many cultures that make our community stronger,” Ryan added.
The Somali flag-raising has stirred controversy in the city, especially since it falls so close to the Fourth of July and the celebration of America’s 250th anniversary. As they raised the Somali flag in the city square, Buffalo city officials were also blasted for scrapping the Fourth of July fireworks celebration.
“City Hall canceled its downtown fireworks display, leaving Buffalo as one of the only cities in Western New York without a public Fourth of July celebration, and instead raised the flag of Somalia outside City Hall,” Erie County, New York, GOP Chairman Michael Kracker said. “No one is questioning the contributions of Buffalo’s immigrant communities. But this week belongs to all of us, as Americans.”
Mayor Ryan announced in early June that the city planned to revive its patriotic fireworks display for America’s 250th birthday. Buffalo hasn’t put on a Fourth of July fireworks show in decades as the city focuses on a big New Year’s Eve fireworks display. This week, however, Ryan said the patriotic show wouldn’t take place.
“After exploring potential locations, an appropriate site could not be identified that would provide a safe and widely accessible viewing experience for residents. As a result, the City will not be hosting a downtown fireworks display this year,” he said.
Buffalo isn’t the only American city to raise the Somali flag on government property to celebrate the foreign country. Columbus, Ohio, which is home to the second-largest concentration of Somalis in the United States, also announced that it would hoist the Somali flag on July 1, The Daily Wire previously reported.
The Columbus Parks and Rec Department deleted the post announcing the Somali flag raising moments after The Daily Wire asked about it.
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