On June 27, while we were out of town, our Gay Pride flag was stolen from our front yard flagpole. In the process of stealing the Pride flag, the thieves left our American flag on the ground in a crumpled, disrespected heap just days before the 250 year celebration of our nation. Fortunately, one of our kind neighbors stepped in and raised our flag to its rightful place.
Shortly after this happened, as part of our trip, we visited the American Cemetery in Luxembourg where 5,070 service members lie, including Gen. George Patton. These service members, along with thousands of others throughout our history fought for our freedoms and fought and died defending our flag. I hope that one day, the unknown individuals who stole our Pride flag and desecrated our American flag will visit this cemetery and gain understanding of the significance of their sacrifice.
We don’t know who stole our flag, but one of our neighbors had some fencing broken on that same night, perhaps vandalized by the same individuals. We fly the Pride flag because we have dear friends who are gay and we consider them our family. The unknown individuals who stole our flag probably believe that they are right in speaking out against a perceived threat to their way of life. In reality, they are only showing the hate in their own hearts. That we fly the Pride flag has no impact on them personally.
We will replace our Pride flag and raise it on the flagpole in our front yard. In addition, we have donated $50.00 to Utah Price Center in the name of the unknown individuals who stole our flag. That is how we choose to fight hate.
Sherry and Gil Avellar, Draper