A masked man is believed to be responsible for cutting down several Pride flags recently and burning them to ashes in a Salt Lake City neighborhood.
On Monday morning, Salt Lake City police received reports of at least five Pride flags having been vandalized on S. Washington Street in the Ballpark neighborhood. The area, known as SLC’s unofficial gay district, is located near Harvey Milk Blvd. and has a number of gay bars and other LGBTQ+ establishments.
“I was at a loss for emotions and feelings because it was, it was sort of shocking that this happened,” said Joseph Leyba, one of the residents whose Pride flag was damaged in the incident.
“Harvey Milk was a gay rights icon that was assassinated in San Francisco for trying to bring awareness and inclusiveness to the gay community,” Leyba continued. “It’s shocking to me that that would happen in this area.”
Milk, considered the first openly gay man to hold public office in California when he was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in the late 1970s, was shot and killed less than a year after assuming office in January 1978. Though gay rights groups have claimed Milk as an early activist, others have alleged that Milk engaged in illicit sex with minors. Matt Barber, formerly of the Christian organization Liberty Counsel, said in 2013 that Milk was a known “pederast … who in his mid-30s had a sexual appetite for teenage boys as young as 15 years old.” Then just last month, Dr. Joseph Komrosky, president of the Temecula Valley School Board in southern California, referred to Milk as “a pedophile” during a public meeting.
Regardless of Milk’s legacy, those who live in his shadow in Salt Lake City have expressed hurt and anger over the Pride flag desecrations. “Started today with a very heavy heart and tears in my eyes as I found out my neighborhood, and my home, were targeted in a hate attack early this morning,” Paul Johnson, another area resident, wrote on social media. “Whoever did this is a coward and I’m just sad for them.”
“The neighborhood’s here with you,” Doug Flagler, the central ninth community council chair, added through tears. “We care, and this shouldn’t happen. This shouldn’t be happening in this day and age.”
According to footage captured on one home’s security camera, a man wearing a mask and tactical gear walked up on the porch sometime between 1 and 1:30 a.m. on Monday, calmly cut down the Pride flag, and then walked away. People discovered the charred remains of those flags on the street later that morning.
Police are now investigating the incident as a possible “hate crime.” Under Utah law, a suspect can be charged with a hate crime if the victim is believed to have been targeted for being a member of a protected class for characteristics such race, religion, and sexual orientation.
“The Salt Lake City Police Department educates its officers and works with our community to recognize, and condemn, hate crimes and works to prevent them from occurring in the future,” a police statement said. “The effects of a hate crime can be devastating and long-lasting for both the individual victim and the larger community.”
An unnamed woman has since gone to the homes affected by the vandalism and offered those residents a new Pride flag to replace the ones that were ruined. “Within 12 hours of this incident some kind, anonymous person, left a new flag with a note of love!” added Johnson’s social media post. “It’s been a hard day but I will sleep well tonight with my new Pride flag flying, in addition to keeping the remains of the damaged one.”
Police cautioned that more than one person may be involved in the incident. Other police departments in Utah are also investigating similar incidents in South Jordan, Millcreek, and Holladay, all of which are located within 20 miles of Salt Lake City.
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