Hamtramck: the Muslim city that banned the LGBT flag
Hamtramck has banned the LGBT flag and a judge has upheld the measure. The Muslim vote has shifted: from Biden 86-13 to Harris 46-43.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Hamtramck bans the LGBT flag and the courts back the city council
On the outskirts of Detroit, Hamtramck looks like a nod to twenty-first-century demographics: 28,000 residents who, since 2013, have had a Muslim majority and who in 2021 put in charge a city council that is one hundred percent Muslim and male. In 2023, that council banned flying the LGBT flag on public buildings. Now the courts have sided with it: the measure also banned political, religious and racial flags.
The census that hides a majority
The paradox begins on paper. The U.S. census classifies citizens from the Middle East and North Africa as white, so Hamtramck is officially 55.9% white. But 39.2% of its residents report ancestry from that region: Yemenis (25.5%), Bangladeshis (14.5%), Indians (11.7%). A majority that does not show up in the racial picture.
The electoral shift that upends expectations
That social change is reflected at the ballot box. Biden won Hamtramck in 2020 by an overwhelming 86-13. In 2024, Harris only managed 46-43, punished by the Gaza policy and by Trump's promise to end the wars. The Muslim vote was decisive in the Republican's win in Michigan, and now it is returning to the Democratic Party.
It is worth remembering: the mayor who pushed the ban is a Democrat and in 2024 asked for votes for Trump. Even the identity manuals do not quite add up.
On the outskirts of Detroit, Hamtramck looks like a nod to twenty-first-century demographics: 28,000 residents who, since 2013, have had a Muslim majority and who in 2021 put in charge a city council that is one hundred percent Muslim and male. In 2023, that council banned flying the LGBT flag on public buildings. Now the courts have sided with it: the measure also banned political, religious and racial flags.
The census that hides a majority
The paradox begins on paper. The U.S. census classifies citizens from the Middle East and North Africa as white, so Hamtramck is officially 55.9% white. But 39.2% of its residents report ancestry from that region: Yemenis (25.5%), Bangladeshis (14.5%), Indians (11.7%). A majority that does not show up in the racial picture.
The electoral shift that upends expectations
That social change is reflected at the ballot box. Biden won Hamtramck in 2020 by an overwhelming 86-13. In 2024, Harris only managed 46-43, punished by the Gaza policy and by Trump's promise to end the wars. The Muslim vote was decisive in the Republican's win in Michigan, and now it is returning to the Democratic Party.
It is worth remembering: the mayor who pushed the ban is a Democrat and in 2024 asked for votes for Trump. Even the identity manuals do not quite add up.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (10 replies).
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