A London council is facing legal action after installing a set of controversial road crossings in the colors of the transgender pride flag.
In 2021, the Labour run Camden council installed blue, pink and white crossings in Bloomsbury in a bid to “help celebrate transgender awareness” and to act “as a reminder of the rich LGBT+ history in Camden.”
But Camden resident Blessing Olubanjo is threatening to bring a legal challenge to have the four crossings at Tavistock Place and Marchmont Street removed or redesigned because, she claims, it “constitutes unlawful political messaging”.
The Telegraph reports: The 57-year-old claims the installations, which cost £10,464 in taxpayers’ money, constitute a violation of political neutrality laws under the Local Government Act 1986, as well as an infringement of freedom of belief and expression under the Human Rights Act 1998.
The NHS administrator, who is an Evangelical Christian, told The Telegraph: “I brought this case because I believe in fairness, freedom of belief, and the proper role of public institutions.
“As a Christian and a taxpayer, I should not be made to feel excluded or marginalised by political symbols in public spaces.
“This crossing sends a message that only one viewpoint is welcome, and that’s not right in a truly democratic society.
“I’m standing up not just for myself, but for everyone who feels silenced or sidelined by discredited, harmful activism forced on the public by ideologically captured local authorities.”
Andrea Williams, the chief executive of the Christian Legal Centre, who is supporting Ms Olubanjo, added: “Not only is this crossing a matter of public safety and Christian freedom, it’s about the misuse of public resources for political campaigning.
“The crossing is a visual endorsement of a contested ideology, installed by a public authority in breach of its legal duties.
“This is not the role of local government. Public spaces should be able to be used by everyone, not to advance divisive agendas that alienate people of faith and those who hold to biological reality.
“The council needs to remove or redesign the crossing and apologise to its residents and local businesses.”
At the time the plans were announced in autumn 2021, the Royal National Institute for the Blind also told the council that colourful designs at crossings could cause confusion to the blind and pose safety risks to those with poor vision trying to cross the busy street.