Thon Hotels in Norway capitulate to pressure to fly Pride flag

[PriOn1]

Hopefully this will work. I will post links to the original article in Norwegian and then to a link that’s translated through Google Translate. This isn’t directly related to women’s rights, but is an interesting demonstration of the power the 🏳️‍🌈 lobby carries before it.

I read yesterday that Thon Hotels had made the decision not to fly the Pride flag this year as they wanted to remain neutral. There were a lot of comments under the article which agreed with the stance, saying flying the flag shouldn’t be compulsory and that it was now so ubiquitous that it had gone too far. There were also comments about the sexualisation of Pride.

There was also an article from a gay man, saying it shouldn’t be compulsory and that not flying the flag didn’t imply hate. He seemed gender critical and again, there were supportive comments and almost no pushback.

Today, Thon Hotels have capitulated and will fly the flag after all. As ever, I find it bewildering just how much power this particular lobby carries before it.

In Norwegian:

https://www.nrk.no/mr/thon-hotels-snur-_-tillet-heising-av-pride-flagg-1.16436767

Through Google Translate:

https://www-nrk-no.translate.goog/mr/thon-hotels-snur-_-tillet-heising-av-pride-flagg-1.16436767?_x_tr_sl=no&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp

I agree. That was weird.
Thon had a perfectly reasonable statement on why they didn’t want to fly the rainbow flag, and suddenly there was a U-turn.
Very odd indeed.

A pleasant surprise to see the traditional pride flag in those photos, and not the LGB-erasing 'progress' one.

Primary schools in Ireland for kids age 4-11 called "Educate Together Schools " fly the rainbow flag outside the school. My local one is celebrating pride throughout the month of June. Surely primary schools should be neutral?
To my knowledge this is only happening in Educate Together but I may be wrong. No rainbows or anything like that in my dc's primary. Secondary is different...

Can I ask what you mean by neutral?

Pride is political, by definition. Like many others, you presumably see their political stance as being so indisputable as to be neutral. It isn’t.

And I agree, @zibzibara . I’ve seen some fairly extensive rainbow celebrations in Norway, but never the ‘progress’ version that seems to have become much more common in the UK and US.

Sadly I don’t find it odd at all @turbonerd . Hopefully we’re not so far down the road that return is impossible.

Those running Pride had a great chance to show how reasonable they were, in my opinion. Had they spoken up in defence of Thon and said that people should have the right to choose, they would have sent out a message of tolerance that would have resonated with anyone who is beginning to feel uncomfortable at the level of (increasingly enforced) conformity. It was extremely unlikely they would have the subtlety (and humility) to do that, but that would have amazed me.

I guess the pressure was about the shooting last year, so Thon felt they would come across as -at best - uncaring dicks, at worst as if they condoned the attack.
I don’t think this; but it seems like this is the twisted logic behind those who pile on the pressure.

The Fri people don’t seem to grasp the concept of free choice. Or that tolerance and acceptance can be without trumpets.
It seems to me the press is less fawning than it was. There have been some inquiring pieces in the papers lately.
Freedom of speech is also a force to be reckoned with, so I am hopeful things will calm down and proper debate can be had.

Did you watch the Nytt På Nytt when they had, I think it was Luca or Lucas visiting?

I was aware the shooting had been used to apply pressure, but I suspect that the pressure would have been brought to bear, regardless.

I don’t know enough about the politics of individual news outlets to know how significant it was, but there were many comments on the article I read that were in favour of Thon’s decision. There were also mentions of Fri (the Norwegian Organisation for Sexual and Gender Diversity) having been given over to queer theory/ideology.

Unrest is definitely growing in Norway. The shooting has inevitably been used to accuse WDI and anyone associated with (male exclusionary) women’s rights campaigning as reactionary and a threat to democracy.

But it seems to me that applying pressure to conform to rainbow washing is very much a genuine threat to democracy. What is occurring then, is projection on a massive scale.

I forgot to say that it is particularly ironic that the insistence that people should not be tarred with the same brush doesn’t seem to apply to feminists who are, of course, to be blamed for a man with a gun.

Cowards.

As I said on another thread I feel Pride month has been completely toned down in my town. Usually flags are flying everywhere, banners, buntings, pedestrian crossings used be painted rainbow but besides Primark in the local shopping centre it's the same as normal in the town.
There is a parade happening the end of the month & it's always very well supported but the whole month of rainbow paraphernalia has been a non event in my town.