Fact check: The Biden administration has flown Pride flags in Muslim-majority countries

Sudiksha Kochi, USA TODAY
·4 min read
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The claim: The Biden administration has never flown Pride flags outside US embassies in 'Islamic countries'

In 2021, Secretary of State Antony Blinken granted U.S. embassies and consulates overseas permission to display the Pride flag on the same flagpole as the American flag.

But some social media posts claim the Biden administration has never flown a Pride flag outside U.S. embassies in countries that predominately practice Islam.

The exchange began with a June 1 tweet from the U.S. Embassy to the Holy See – the universal government of the Catholic Church that operates from Vatican City State – that showed a picture of a Pride flag outside the embassy building.

Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro responded to this on Twitter the same day, saying, "Let's be clear: the Biden administration would never do this in an Islamic country. This is anti-Catholic bigotry."

Young America's Foundation then shared Shapiro's tweet on June 6 on Instagram, accumulating over 3,000 interactions in less than a week. Shapiro's tweet received over 5,000 likes. Similar posts have amassed hundreds of interactions on Facebook.

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But the claim is false.

Numerous examples show that Pride flags have been flown outside U.S. embassies in Muslim-majority countries during the Biden administration.

USA TODAY reached out to Young America's Foundation, Shapiro and the social media users who shared the claim for comment.

Pride flags have been flown in Muslim-majority countries

Chiefs of Mission – the president’s direct representatives overseas – may fly the Pride flag at U.S. diplomatic facilities overseas if they determine it is appropriate to do so, according to a spokesperson for the U.S. State Department.

"Recognizing that each country context is different, embassies and consulates develop individual plans to raise awareness of discrimination, violence and human rights abuses targeting LGBTQI+ persons, including appropriate exterior displays, in consultation with local civil society," the spokesperson told USA TODAY in an emailed statement.

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The Biden administration has flown Pride flags outside U.S. embassies in countries that predominately practice Islam. The U.S. Embassy to Manama, Bahrain, shared a tweet on June 2, 2021, that shows a Pride flag next to a U.S. flag in honor of Pride month.

Bahrain's constitution declares Islam to be the official religion in the country, according to a 2021 report on International Religious Freedom from the U.S. State Department. The Ministry of Information Affairs website indicates that 99.8% of citizens practice Islam.

The U.S. Embassy to the United Arab Emirates shared a tweet on June 28, 2021, that shows a Pride flag below a U.S. flag on a flagpole with this caption: "On the anniversary of Stonewall, a milestone in the American civil rights movement, the U.S. Mission shows its support for the dignity and equality of all people."

The official religion in the United Arab Emirates is also Islam, according to the religious freedom report. A 2005 census – the most recent – shows that 76% of the population is Muslim, the report states.

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And the U.S. Embassy in Pristina, Kosovo, shared a Facebook post on June 10 that shows the Pride flag placed on the embassy building. A 2011 census – the most recent – shows that 95.6% of the population is Muslim, according to the religious freedom report.

Our rating: False

Based on our research, we rate FALSE the claim that the Biden administration has never flown Pride flags outside U.S. embassies in Islamic countries. U.S. embassies have flown Pride flags in several countries that have established Islam as their official religion or have a Muslim-majority population during the Biden administration.

Our fact-check sources:

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fact check: US embassies in Muslim-majority countries had Pride flags