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Resident says Puerto Rican flag repeatedly removed from Coventry cemetery; town manager says flags allowed
Summary
A Willimantic resident told the Coventry Town Council his son's Puerto Rican flag was repeatedly removed from his grave; Town Manager James Drumm said the Cemetery Commission member who told him only American flags are allowed was incorrect and staff will continue to investigate.
Moises Flores, a Willimantic resident who said he was previously a Coventry resident, told the Coventry Town Council on June 1 that a Puerto Rican flag he placed at his son's grave in Coventry Cemetery has been repeatedly removed.
Flores said a member of the Cemetery Commission told him that "Coventry Cemetery only allows the American Flag," a statement he described as insensitive. Rodney Alexander Jr., 1st Vice President of the Windham-Willimantic Branch of the NAACP, said Flores contacted him about the incident and asked the council for a formal apology and training for volunteers and staff. "The climate in America is sad right now, and that federal leaders are making people of color feel like less than 2nd class citizens," Alexander Jr. said, calling a claim that only American flags are permitted "a slap in the face to Latinos."
Town Manager James Drumm responded during the meeting that the Cemetery Commission member's statement was incorrect. "It [is] not the policy of the town and no flags are prohibited," Drumm said, and he told the council staff would continue to look into the matter. Drumm also said he and DPW Director Bill Watkins had previously told Flores that flags are not prohibited at the cemetery.
Why it matters: municipal rules about grave markers and decorations can touch on free-expression and equal-treatment concerns, and commenters asked the council to clarify policy and provide sensitivity training for volunteers who manage cemetery grounds.
At the meeting Alexander Jr. offered to work with the council and Cemetery Commission to resolve the issue. Drumm recorded the complaint and said staff will continue to investigate; the minutes do not show a formal apology or a change in written policy was adopted at the June 1 meeting.
The council took no formal action on this complaint during the meeting. The town manager indicated staff will follow up, and citizens seeking a specific written clarification or disciplinary response would need to await that staff review or raise the matter again at a future meeting.
