Fired from Yosemite over a trans flag: “When someone tries to oppress you, the best thing you can do is celebrate yourself”
- Matthieu Amaré
- 3 days ago
- 9 min read
On May 20, 2025, ranger and biologist Shannon “SJ” Joslin hung a trans pride flag on El Capitan on their day off. Three months later, they were fired by the National Park Service. As the Trump administration intensifies its assault on LGBTQ+ rights and federal workers, Joslin’s story shows how political power can reshape daily life in one of America’s most iconic climbing landscapes—and why visibility remains an act of resistance.
Vertige Media: You worked at Yosemite for four and a half years. What was your role there?
Shannon SJ Joslin : I had two major roles. First, I managed the big wall bat program, developing methods to study bats along cliffs, because historically, bat research stopped when researchers hit a cliff. They’re scientists, not climbers. Yosemite was this unique place where we had scientists who were also climbers.
Second, I managed all terrestrial wildlife data for the park—mammals and birds. I built database systems so researchers could effectively work with data from long-term studies and endangered species projects. But I’d been connected to Yosemite since 2008. I wrote the Yosemite bouldering guidebook in 2013, so every weekend I wasn’t working for the park, I was there anyway.
Vertige Media : How did your identity as a trans and nonbinary person intersect with your work before the Trump administration?
Shannon SJ Joslin : I was hired when Biden was president. The Park Service and Department of the Interior had real DEI initiatives promoting inclusion. The head of Interior was actually an Indigenous person—very progressive, taking steps in the right direction.
In that atmosphere, celebrating Pride and LGBT rights was supported. Yosemite has one of the bigger Pride celebrations in the park service. But as soon as there was a hint Trump could be elected again in 2024, things tightened up. We started having issues getting the same Pride events approved. There was this sense of fear, and it made people forget that LGBT rights and supporting marginalized groups is still important.
"There’s a natural heart feature on El Capitan, this iconic granite monolith. I thought, what better way to celebrate ourselves than hanging this flag of acceptance and identity at the base of that heart?"
Then once Trump was inaugurated in 2025, it became concrete. Rules were put in place limiting how we could support people, what words we could use in reports, how we could hire, what groups we could have. All the DEI groups that tried to broaden recruitment—all of that came to a halt.
Vertige Media : How did the idea of flying a trans pride flag on El Capitan come up?
Shannon SJ Joslin : I was on my way to a protest in the park—we have First Amendment areas where protests are allowed. This one was against the recent federal layoffs, when thousands of workers were laid off for no reason. The Trump administration was also pushing legislation specifically targeting trans people.
I think the LGBT community is so beautiful. We’re born into a world where all these traditions tell us we’re supposed to be a certain way, and you have to fight through that to figure out you’re gay, or that your body doesn’t match your brain. It’s a beautiful process of self-discovery. And to me, when someone tries to oppress you, the best thing you can do for yourself—and against them—is celebrate yourself. Smile in their faces. Because they’re trying to crush you, and if you can say, “It doesn’t matter what you think of me, I will always celebrate myself,” then you’ve already pushed back.
So I wanted this gesture of celebrating our community despite all these regulations trying to dim our light. There’s a natural heart feature on El Capitan, this iconic granite monolith. I thought, what better way to celebrate ourselves than hanging this flag of acceptance and identity at the base of that heart? We’d climb up, take photos just like anyone else does in the park, and share them within the trans community to celebrate ourselves.
Vertige Media : Did you know you were taking a risk?
Shannon SJ Joslin : No. I didn’t think I was risking anything, because we’re supposed to have all our freedoms on our own time. We had First Amendment training in the park. I consulted with colleagues who told me, “Don’t do it on a day you work, and you’re supposed to have all your First Amendment rights that day.”
There was historic precedent for flags on El Capitan—even NPS workers off the clock hanging flags, and it being okay. We did it on a Tuesday morning, when not many people are looking at El Cap. We didn’t advertise it. The flag was up for just under three hours, then we took it down.
Everything fell into place so perfectly. At one point, the light hit the flag while the rock was still gray, and it was just glowing. It was beautiful—this silently waving flag expressing something so beautiful. It was incredible.
Vertige Media : Other flags have been hung on El Capitan—a “Stop the Genocide” banner in 2024, an inverted American flag in February 2025. Why was yours treated differently?
Shannon SJ Joslin : It’s ironic. This flag is a flag of identity, whereas those other flags are flags of ideology. As much as I support them, they’re opinions—that America is in disarray, that we should stop the genocide. They’re both correct, in my eyes.
But this flag is just about identity. It’s like if you’re from France and you bring your French flag up the wall—it’s who I am, celebrating myself while doing something big.
The reason this flag got singled out is because the Trump administration knows the best way to group people together and create tribalism for MAGA is to position itself against an enemy. They’re making trans people the enemy, villainizing us. That’s because most people don’t know someone who’s trans, so they don’t know we’re just people trying to exist and go unnoticed.
If it were up to us, we would never want to be noticed. We just want to go about our lives. But because we don’t have equal rights and we’re being attacked, we have to take these stands. Until we’re equal, we have to advocate for ourselves.
Vertige Media : What happened after you came down?
Shannon SJ Joslin : The next day, I got notice of a new law in the Superintendent’s Compendium—the park’s rulebook. They tried to backdate it to the day we hung the flag, which was fishy. Then a couple days later, I was notified I was under criminal investigation. I thought it was posturing.
A couple weeks after that, they said I was also under administrative review. That’s when I really started wondering whether this would affect my job. A month after the flag, they interrogated me. They were fishing: “Did you get paid to hang the flag? Did you give Pattie Gonia the hat?” Wild questions. I was like, “No, I just wanted to celebrate myself.”
"When I got fired, I felt like I lost the love of my life. Like someone murdered the love of my life and I could do nothing about it. Tremendous grief and loss. I lay on the floor for two days in disbelief"
A month or two later, I got called into the acting deputy superintendent’s office. She introduced herself, shook my hand, and handed me a letter saying I was fired. This was August 12, 2025.
Vertige Media : The superintendents are chosen by Washington, not by people who understand the parks. How does that political link work?
Shannon SJ Joslin : Exactly. The two people at the top of all parks—the superintendent and deputy superintendent—are chosen by Washington. They’re political officials, not people chosen by those who understand the place.
When Trump got into office, our progressive superintendent and deputy were eliminated. We got Ray McPatton, a good old boy with a military background. Classic situation—he’s worked at multiple parks, has a terrible reputation, but keeps getting promoted because instead of prioritizing what the park needs, he prioritizes what Washington wants.
Vertige Media : How did the firing affect you emotionally?
Shannon SJ Joslin : Overwhelmingly. People who work for the Park Service don’t make much money. We live in rural areas. We sacrifice a lot to steward the place we love. It becomes our whole life—we surround ourselves with coworkers, live in tiny towns. What motivates us every day is that sense of awe.
When I got fired, I felt like I lost the love of my life. Like someone murdered the love of my life and I could do nothing about it. Tremendous grief and loss. I lay on the floor for two days in disbelief.
That was my dream job. I’m a scientist, I love bats, I love data. That position was what my life had been building toward. Suddenly, this place where I thought, “I’m going to live here for the rest of my career,” was no longer secure. I live in a town where I break bread with people, where I want to watch their kids grow up, where I want to be part of the community. We literally build each other’s houses. And all of that was put at risk because I didn’t know whether I’d be able to get another job and still live where I live.
"But I’ve even tried to apply for volunteer positions and didn’t even get an interview. Because of this climate of fear, I’m untouchable now"
Vertige Media : How did you rebuild?
Shannon SJ Joslin : My old colleagues and neighbors pulled me back up. I had a friend who would show up, lie on the floor with me, and say, “All right, we’re going to hang some shelves today.” My colleagues started a GoFundMe so I could take some time to figure things out instead of immediately needing another job.
But I’ve even tried to apply for volunteer positions. I’m way overqualified for search and rescue—I’ve been coming to the park for 17 years, I’m a swiftwater rescue technician, a wilderness first responder, and I have advanced rope training. I applied to Tuolumne Search and Rescue and didn’t even get an interview. Because of this climate of fear, I’m untouchable now. People are so scared they feel like they have to turn their backs on their friend. That’s incredibly upsetting—this sense of loss for all of us.
Vertige Media : How did the climbing community respond?
Shannon SJ Joslin : This is kind of a funny answer, but I think because the climbing community isn’t a marginalized community, certain people posted about it, but by and large, the people who helped and were the most vocal were other marginalized communities. That’s something we see often in the States.
It’s disheartening because as someone who takes care of a climbing mecca, it would be nice to see more professional climbers engage politically. Our jobs have been politicized, but we just don’t see that from a lot of climbers. Some were great, especially local climbers.
But it’s hard—we spend so much time making sure people can keep climbing here, and then to see them not support us when so much of what we do is about supporting them, that hurts. Some cis, straight, white male pro climber who uses Yosemite to land sponsorships—it’s so hard to get that person to make any public statement about federal workers being laid off. They just go silent.
Vertige Media : Where are you now legally, and what are you fighting for beyond your own situation?
Shannon SJ Joslin : I’m suing the federal government. Part of the lawsuit is about defending federal workers’ First Amendment rights. If we win on that front, it would strengthen our protections.
"Celebrating who you are isn’t political. It’s human"
We’ve also unionized in the Park Service. I was actually fired during the unionization process, which isn’t supposed to happen.
And we’re in a trans rights movement right now. We need to secure trans rights in this country the same way we did with civil rights and gay rights. And that takes allies showing up. The gay rights movement would not have happened unless straight people stood with us. The civil rights movement would not have happened unless white people fought to end segregation.
Trans rights won’t happen unless more people advocate for us, because we’re such a small part of the population—maybe 1 or 2 percent—and we’re being villainized. The same goes for federal workers’ rights. Hopefully what comes out of this is that we gain more rights, those rights get solidified, and we’re protected in more ways. We filed our briefing, and now we’re waiting for the government’s response. The next hearing, or the judge’s decision, is set for May 14.
Vertige Media : What would you say to someone reading this and thinking, “This doesn’t concern me—I just want to climb”?
Shannon SJ Joslin : If the government is working well for you, you don’t think about the government. But when it stops working, when it starts targeting people, we all have a responsibility to speak up.
Climbing happens on public lands that we all help steward. When the people protecting those lands are silenced, fired, or forced out for who they are, it affects everyone.
Celebrating who you are isn’t political. It’s human. And when celebration becomes an act of resistance, that’s when we need allies most.
