On February 9, 2026, citing a policy directive that President Trump had issued a couple of weeks earlier, National Park Service (NPS) officials removed the Pride flag from New York City’s Stonewall National Monument, which marks the birthplace of the modern LGBTQ rights movement. The directive had instructed the NPS that only the U.S. flag, certain agency flags and a few exceptions could be flown on federal park flagpoles. But on February 13, city officials and activists, including members of ACT UP and Gays Against Guns, hoisted a new Pride flag.

And on Tuesday, February 17, in Washington, DC, 25 demonstrators were arrested after blockading the headquarters of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The date marked the end of the public comment period for proposed HHS rules that would effectively ban gender-affirming care for most trans youth. These rules would forbid hospitals that participate in Medicaid and Medicare programs (virtually all hospitals) from providing puberty blockers, hormone therapy or surgical procedures to trans youth. The blockade was spearheaded by the Gender Liberation Movement with the participation of members of ACT UP New York and ACT UP Pittsburgh.

These bold examples of direct action are a response to the Trump administration’s targeted attacks against minority populations. The protests serve to underscore the importance of vigilance in safeguarding the dignity, rights and health of all Americans. As long as those in power act against the people, the people will keep acting up.

Protesters blocked the entrance to the Hubert H. Humphrey Building

Protesters blocked the entrance to the Hubert H. Humphrey Building@framed.unrest/Instagram

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