Lincolnwood officials who organize the annual Diversity Month adopted a new image this year, as they plan fresh events to replace the once-controversial flag display along Lincoln Avenue.
Up until last year, a display of more than 60 flags hung along the town’s main thoroughfare every August for more than a decade meant to highlight the diverse cultural backgrounds represented in the village.
The flag display — once a rich tradition for the Lincolnwood community — came under scrutiny two years ago when heightened tensions in the Middle East in late summer of 2014 divided the community. Some residents at the time gathered at village hall for a public hearing and decried the Palestinian flag’s presence among the other countries’ flags.
Despite some opposition to the flag, Lincolnwood kept Palestine’s flag flying until all the flags were taken down in September, when Diversity Month came to a close. None of the flags have returned to Lincoln Avenue since 2014.
And village officials still are deciding whether to continue the display along with other new events being planned for Diversity Month this year.
“The flag program is on hold while the village considers various options,” Lincolnwood Police Chief Bob LaMantia said, adding that there are “no immediate plans for the flags.”
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In place of the flags, the volunteer-based Lincolnwood Human Relations Commission is staging a one-day event in Proesel Park Aug. 15 to keep the tradition alive.
Until this year, Diversity Month was marked solely by the flag display.
“We haven’t heard much from the residents about missing the flags since the big ‘hoo-ha’ that happened a few summers ago,” said Rebecca Kohn, chair of the Human Relations Commission. “At one point many years ago, someone decided August would be Diversity Month with no particular rhyme or reason.”
Commissioners are wanting to spread events that highlight the town’s diversity throughout the calendar year, starting with a cultural dance party next week.
Between 6:30 and 8:30 p.m., the park shelter at North Kostner and Morse avenues will host dance groups representing different nationalities including Russian, Ukrainian, Serbian, Macedonian, and Indian.
Cultural dance groups, including the Chicago Cossacks, the Dukati and Biseri Folklore Ensemble, and the Natraj Dance Academy, will take center stage before the dancers begin a free teaching lesson for the public. Free beverages will be handed to guests and staff from the Lincolnwood Public Library will be there with a freezer filled with ice-cream.
“It’s our first step in trying something new (for Diversity Month), and I think it will be good for the morale of the community,” Kohn said. “We’re hoping it will be the start of a series of fun activities we’ll have over the course of the year instead of limiting ourselves to just one month.”
A public works project last summer that called for the replacement of the light poles, where the flags were typically hung, forced the village to cancel last year’s tradition without making a decision about the flag display.
Lincolnwood Mayor Jerry Turry and some village trustees also attended a forum last October at Oakton Community College for public leaders looking to develop programs that embraced diversity on a public level.
For now, as the village tries to form new traditions, Kohn said the pressure to make fresh rituals stick shouldn’t fall solely on the backs of public officials.
“If we don’t get a good turnout, I think it will be hard to get support for other more significant events we’re kicking around,” she said. “We just want people to have fun and come out to connect with each other by having a good time.”
Natalie Hayes is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.