Lawsuit by the Yosemite ranger fired after hanging a giant transgender flag is dismissed
A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by a former Yosemite National Park ranger. Fired after flying a giant transgender pride flag From a rock wall rising above the main street of a California park.
U.S. District Judge Jennifer Thurston found Friday that Shannon “SJ” Joslin, who identifies as nonbinary and uses the pronoun they, must follow the process set out by the Civil Service Reform Act. Since Joslin was still a probationary employee at the time they were fired last year, that meant they had to file a complaint with the Office of Special Counsel, which they did.
The Special Counsel denied Joslin’s initial request to suspend the firing while it investigated whether the Park Service broke the law, according to court filings. The final decision will be made in August.
Joslin, a biologist who studies bats, said they helped hang the 20-foot-wide transgender pride flag on El Capitan on May 20, 2025, for about two hours before it was voluntarily taken down. Joslin hung the flag on his days off, not while on duty.
They told The Associated Press last year that hanging the flag was a way to say, “We are all safe in national parks.”
The termination letter Joslin received in August 2025 accused them of “failing to exhibit acceptable behavior” and referenced the flag incident. “You participated in an unauthorized small group demonstration in an area outside the designated protest and demonstration area… thereby circumventing the rules that apply to all park visitors,” the letter said.
Many parks have designated “First Amendment areas” where groups of 25 or fewer people can protest without a permit. There are many of these sites in Yosemite, including an area in Yosemite Valley where El Capitan is located.
Joslin’s lawsuit accuses the National Park Service, the Department of Internal Affairs and other defendants of constitutional violations, including violating Joslin’s right to free speech. Joslin’s firing was “vindictive, retaliatory, and intended to convey disapproval of a particular point of view,” according to court filings. While others flew flags on El Capitan, Joslin says they don’t know of anyone else who was punished for it.
In Friday’s ruling, Thurston acknowledged that the termination appeal procedure outlined in federal civil service rules leaves probationary employees like Joslin with very limited recourse if a decision is made against them. However, the judge noted that allowing probationary employees to take their complaints directly to the courts would give them more options than permanent employees.
A campaign was launched in the park the day after Joslin’s flag display. rule prohibiting hanging people Banners, flags or signs larger than 15 square meters in park areas designated as “wilderness” or “potential wilderness.” According to Yosemite’s website, this covers 94% of the park.
The rule follows another high-profile demonstration in February 2025, when a group of demonstrators protested by hanging an upside-down American flag on El Capitan. Layoffs of National Park Service employees by President Donald Trump’s administration.
