El Paso Wraps Street Lights in Pride Flags After TX Ban

When Texas Governor Greg Abbott banned Pride-themed crosswalks last October, El Paso didn't back down. They just got creative.

The city wrapped street lights along Stanton Street with colorful cylinders featuring the Intersex-Inclusive Progress Pride Flag. The decorative sleeves brighten downtown El Paso while staying completely legal under the new restrictions.

"Celebrating Pride Month in El Paso!" the City of El Paso announced on Instagram in early June. "We're excited to announce the installation of colorful Pride-themed decorative cylinders on streetlights around Pride Square."

The ban came after Abbott ordered the removal of LGBTQ+ Pride crosswalks and other road markings that "advance political agendas." Two months earlier, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis had made a similar move, removing roughly 400 pieces of rainbow street art across Florida, including the memorial for the 49 victims of the Pulse nightclub shooting.

But communities in both states refused to let their Pride disappear. Residents and city officials have installed rainbow bike racks, painted fence posts, revamped private parking lots with LGBTQ+ friendly murals, and even displayed rainbow laser beams in the night sky.

Amber Perez, executive director of the Borderland Rainbow Center, told KTSM the street light project showed what collaboration can achieve. "One of the things that has been the most amazing about all of this work is the collaboration between the City, local queer organizations, and activists," she said.

The Ripple Effect

The creative resistance is spreading beyond El Paso. Cities across Texas and Florida are finding their own ways to celebrate Pride while working within new legal constraints.

What started as an attempt to erase visibility has sparked even more determination to be seen. Perez noted that after a subdued Pride season last year filled with uncertainty, communities are bouncing back stronger.

"I think this year we're seeing a bounce back from that, saying, 'You know what? Whatever happens, it doesn't matter,'" Perez explained. "We are here, we are queer, and we exist."

The installations sit at the heart of downtown, between Franklin and Missouri avenues, welcoming residents and visitors to a city that found a way to shine its light anyway.