At the beginning of his presidency, President Trump made a significant impact.

Trump approved 25 executive orders, including a declaration that there are “only two genders” in the US, a change to immigration regulations, and a suspension to the TikTok ban.

However, he is now targeting two specific flags that stand for different parts of the country.

According to The Washington Free Beacon, the State Department implemented a “one flag policy,” which prohibits any US embassy or abroad mission from flying the BLM or Pride flags.

Only three flags that are not the stars and stripes of the US national flag are permitted to be flown under the new regulation.

These are the flags for Hostage of Wrongful Detainee, Missing in Action, and Prisoner of War.

The Beacon, a news agency reported as the order stating: “Starting immediately, only the United States of America flag is authorized to be flown or displayed at U.S. facilities, both domestic and abroad, and featured in U.S. government content.”

On Monday, January 20, the Senate overwhelmingly approved the order by a vote of 99 to 0.

In February 2022, the US Embassy and Consulate in Brazil flew the Black Lives Matter flag to “remember Black History Month.” Both flags have been flown in front of official US buildings.

The same was done by US embassies in Trinidad and Tobago.

The US embassy in Moscow and the White House have also flown pride flags.

The Latvian Embassy in Riga raised the flag in May 2023 to commemorate the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia, while the US Embassy in Nassau flew rainbow colors throughout the entire month of June in 2021.

The order came from the desk of Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who wrote: “The U.S. flag is a powerful symbol of pride and it is fitting and respectful that only the U.S. flag be flown or displayed at U.S. facilities, both domestically and abroad.”

According to Kevin Jennings, CEO of Lambda Legal, the prohibition of the Pride and other flags is “perry and mean-spirited,” as he told Newsweek.

He said, “Flying such flags is simply a signal to people that they matter. It hurts no one. We have much bigger challenges to address as a nation and this is just a small-minded distraction from them.”

Any effort to fly the prohibited flags will not be tolerated, according to The Beacon.

It is unclear if there will be further penalties for violating the new rules, but State Department workers who do so will “face disciplinary action, including termination of employment or contract, or reassignment to their home agency.”

Social media users have been responding negatively to this new order.

One user stated, “It’s a human rights violation. The UN will deal with it.”

Another wrote, “Seems like the government is banning free expression.”