A second N.S. community has restricted what flags can be raised by its municipal council, drawing fire from critics who say the move discriminates against gays and lesbians.
On Monday night, Pictou County Council narrowly voted 7-6 to only allow the national, provincial, county and First Nations flags to be raised.
The decision means that the gay pride flag will not be raised by local officials during pride week.
Ramona Westgate, an activist with the Pictou County Pride Group, said officials did not speak with other community groups before voting on the policy.
"They didn't reach out to any of the community organizations, including the Pride of Pictou County, and ask them how they feel or what they thought the effects of this policy would be," she told CTV Atlantic.
Warden Allister MacDonald dismissed any notion the new policy was created from homophobia. He said the restrictions would actually protect the gay community.
"A hate group could come and ask for us to raise a flag, and we would be discriminating against that particular group (by not raising the flag)," he said. "They could take us to a human rights court. This way we're trying to be proactive so that there would be no controversy down the road."
Councillor David Parker voted against the new policy. He said the county has managed without the restrictions for 128 years, and that any policy that excludes the gay pride flag is wrong.
"When we are able to fly that flag over our community, it will mean that we are at least beginning to confront our fears and our prejudices, and grow as a community," he said.
A similar policy was created by Truro's council last year, after officials opposed raising a gay pride flag.
Truro Mayor Bill Wills said he acted on his interpretation of Christian beliefs, saying: "There are writings in the Book of Romans chapter one, to name a few -- basically I have to go with that conviction, and I know it's not a popular one."
Rev. David Fletcher, an Anglican priest in Truro, said the mayor's comments had "embarrassed a lot of Christians by interpreting the bible in a very unfavourable way."
"If we want to shout bible passages back and forth, my bible bullet would come from Galatians in Chapter 3, where St. Paul says that in Christ, there is no more exclusion," he said.
With a report from CTV Atlantic's Dan MacIntosh
