California’s ‘most charming town’ Solvang reluctantly dragged into culture war over LGBTQ pride flags

News

By Marjorie Hernandez

May 7, 2023 | 11:18am

The “most charming town in California” has been dragged into the nation’s culture war over LGBTQ pride flags, frustrating residents and business owners who want to stay out of the political brouhaha.

Danish-themed town Solvang — famous for its charming windmills and picturesque 18th century Danish-inspired architecture — has been reluctantly embroiled in controversy after the city council voted against a proposal to hang Pride banners in the downtown area for an entire month.

Some council members even said they have received death threats.

“We’ve been a Danish destination for decades and that’s why tourists love coming here because it’s fun,” Solvang council member Robert Clarke told The Post.

“But now, this issue has become polarizing and some of the residents wish it never came up.”

“They don’t want any flags — not MAGA, not ‘Right to Life,’ and not anything to do with Proud Boys.

“How do we say no to the next group that wants to put their flags up? Right now, I don’t know.

“I think if somebody were to try and sue us, they would have a pretty good shot of it, unfortunately.”

The dustup started after husbands Kiel and Matthew Cavalli asked the city council earlier this year to allow the rainbow-colored banners to be displayed in the main thoroughfare of the town, and paint crosswalks for the entire Pride Month of June, according to an LA Times report.

The council on April 21 rejected the Cavallis’ motion, but did allow them to be displayed for 10 days.

However, this led to barrages of abuse from people on the extremes of both sides of political spectrum.

Clarke alleged a group of woke activists took their disappointment too far after the council’s decision not to allow the Pride flags to remain on display.

“Residents overwhelmingly don’t want the banners for the entire month, but I still got a lot of threats and emails … and they are even going through my trash to dig up some dirt, I guess,” Clarke said.

On the other hand, Kiel Cavalli said his family received online threats, going so far as to call him and his husband pedophiles, however, he maintained seeing LGBTQ representation in their small town is important.

“Me being gay is not political. I have nothing to gain from this other than representation. Other than my kids walking down the street, seeing a rainbow banner on a light pole and saying, ‘Papa, look at that. That’s who we are,” Kiel Cavalli said at the April 24 city council meeting.

Solvang, located 130 miles north of Los Angeles, boasts a picture postcard-perfect glimpse of a place and era frozen in time. It is filled with small businesses which sell everything from delicious Danish desserts to collectible imported European goods.

The unified look and image of the town are its lifeblood and keep tourists flowing in, the town’s primary source of revenue. Its council therefore takes any changes to its appearance seriously and are reluctant to display views which stake the town either side of any political or cultural divide.

Danish immigrants purchased the picturesque land and founded the town in 1911, and it has since been one of the most favored tourist destinations in the state.

Some business owners are disappointed that the international attention has given some negative light on the quaint Danish town of 6,000 residents.

“It’s a shame because that’s not what Solvang is about,” said a business owner who didn’t want to be identified. “What’s being portrayed out there right now is Solvang is racist and homophobic, and that’s just not true.

“Everyone here just want their families and children to be safe and to be able to celebrate what they want, which is what we’ve always been about. It’s a little crazy to me that it’s turned into this because it really doesn’t represent all the people that I know and have loved in this community. I just don’t understand how it’s turned into this.”

Clarke said it doesn’t matter whether someone wants to wave a Pride flag or a Make America Great Again banner — Solvang’s identity as a safe and friendly Danish town should not be lost in the current controversy.

“I get a lot of emails from groups calling for my resignation,” he said. “I don’t represent the mayor of Copenhagen and I don’t represent woke mobs in LA in San Francisco.

“I represent the residents of this town. Whether you agree with it or not, it’s not a political message.”