Trump and Nope: D.C. residents argue through balcony banners

Washington, D.C. is known for being a political city, but this is getting ridiculous. In Camden South Capitol, a residential building across the street from Nationals Park, residents have hung flags and other banners either in support of or in disapproval of President Donald Trump.

One banner reads, “RESIST,” in reference to the Greenpeace protestors who climbed a Downtown construction crane in January 2017. Another banner resembles a Trump campaign poster, while a banner in a balcony directly beneath it simply has the word, “Nope,” on it along with an arrow pointing upwards.

Washingtonian reported that the building manager Shaun Lambert wrote in an email to the Camden South Capitol residents, “While we love our residents creativity and unique decorating, the time has come for us to remind all residents it is a lease violation if you … hang anything off of your balcony—yes this even include banners/flags supporting our beloved Washington Nationals.”

In October 2016, the only flags that hung from the building’s balconies were LBGT pride flags and Black Lives Matter flags. Before this, according to a Curbed reader, the first flags were pirates and Washington Nationals flags. What eventually set off the sign war, according to Washingtonian, was a “Make America Great Again” flag that was hung on one of the balconies.

While the First Amendment allows for freedom of speech, Joel Cohn, the legislative director for D.C.’s Office of the Tenant Advocate, told Washingtonian that “Generally, the balcony rule doesn’t sound that out of the ordinary.”

• DC Building Bans Balcony Banners After Residents Use Them to Argue About Politics [Washingtonian]

[UPDATE: A previous version of this article stated that the first flags were were LBGT pride flags and Black Lives Matter flags. The first flags were actually pirates and Washington Nationals flags.]