The city of Columbus, Ohio, the state’s capital and largest city, said it would raise the Somali flag ahead of America’s 250th anniversary.
“Happy Somali Independence Day!” the Columbus Recreation and Parks Department said in a now-deleted post.
“As we celebrate the unification of the Trust Territory of Somaliland and the State of Somaliland into the Somali Republic in 1960, City Hall will be raising the flag of Somalia,” it added.
Columbus, Ohio Parks & Rec DELETES post celebrating “Somali Independence Day” after intense backlash: pic.twitter.com/0f6ZKvg0WL
— TheBlaze (@theblaze) July 1, 2026
Here’s the post before it was deleted:
Fox News shared further:
The post was quickly picked up by conservatives on social media, with many wondering why the city of Columbus would celebrate Somali independence so strongly, particularly given the proximity to the 250th anniversary of American independence.
“Columbus, Ohio raising the flag of Somalia for America 250,” White House deputy chief of staff for policy Stephen Miller posted on X.
“No American government building should ever be raising another country’s flag,” journalist Mark Hemingway posted on X. “Ugh.”
“City Hall is not a foreign embassy,” attorney and political commentator Mehek Cooke posted on X. “As an Ohioan, I am repulsed by the anti-Americanism here. Our leaders treat foreign nationalism as sacred while treating American patriotism as controversial. America’s public buildings should honor America.”
“There is only one nation’s flag that should ever be flown on American government buildings or property,” Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-OH) said.
“This action by Columbus is a total disgrace and takes away from the epic celebration on Saturday of this country’s 250 year celebration,” he added.
There is only one nation’s flag that should ever be flown on American government buildings or property.
This action by Columbus is a total disgrace and takes away from the epic celebration on Saturday of this country’s 250 year celebration. https://t.co/rzIdxmYN8t
— Bernie Moreno (@berniemoreno) July 1, 2026
More from The Daily Wire:
The department deleted the post moments after The Daily Wire asked Parks and Rec and City Hall about it. Neither department immediately replied to questions.
Columbus City Hall’s X account has celebrated Juneteenth and Pride Month, but said nothing about America’s 250th. In June 2023, the council passed a resolution to fly Somalia’s flag. In June 2025, it passed a resolution “To Recognize and Celebrate July 1st as Somali Independence Day in the City of Columbus.”
Columbus is home to the second-largest concentration of Somalis in the United States after Minnesota. The Daily Wire spent time in Columbus after Medicaid records showed some of the most flagrant red flags in the country. Those home-health firms turned out to be run largely by Somalis, to the point where one man said it was racist to ask about Medicaid spending because it was so closely intertwined with Somali identity.
Ohio’s Medicaid spending has doubled over the last decade, leading to a financial crisis.
Other recipients of government grants in Columbus painted a grim picture of Somalis, saying many claimed to be disabled and were illiterate or drug addicts, to the point where some foreigners were being paid by the government to help other foreigners fill out disability and welfare forms.
After the post was deleted, a city spokesperson told Fox News Digital that it was “inaccurate.”
🚨 JUST IN: Columbus, Ohio has BACKTRACKED and will NOT raise the Somali flag to “celebrate Somali independence” today — Columbus mayor spokesman
This comes after they DELETED a post that sparked mass outrage
“A social media post created by a city department falsely stated that… pic.twitter.com/HtAmfRttSG
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) July 1, 2026
“A social media post created by a city department falsely stated that City Hall would raise the Somalian flag in recognition of Somali Independence Day. While the City recognizes and respects the aspirations of people around the world to live in freedom, this post was inaccurate and has been deleted,” the city spokesperson told the outlet.