Photo of Ukrainian nationalists burning a Pride flag in 2017 (Vladimir Shtanko/Anadolu Agency/Getty)
A Pride flag has been set on fire in what human rights activists are saying was a deliberate “act of hate” against the LGBT+ community.
The Pride flag was flying at a home in Rye City in Westchester County, New York State, when homophobes decided to set it alight.
The Westchester County Human Rights Commission slammed the horrific incident as an “act of hate” in a powerful statement released on social media, in which they decried anti-LGBT+ sentiment.
‘Cowards’ who burned a Pride flag were denounced by human rights activists.
“The Westchester County Human Rights Commission and the Westchester County LGBTQ+ Advisory Board stand in solidarity with the Rye City Human Rights Commission and pRYEde Community Group,” they said.
The group denounced those who burned the flag, saying the “cowardly” perpetrators “burned a Pride flag on a homeowner’s private property in Rye earlier this weekend.
These acts remind us how much work needs to be done in the struggle for equality and the fight against hate.
“This is the second recent instance in the county where private property was burned based on hate,” they continued.
“Hate has no place in Westchester County. The Westchester County Human Rights Commission and the LGBTQ+ Advisory Board call on everyone in the community to speak out against all forms of hatred, bigotry and intolerance in our community and to come together.
The incident occurred just weeks after a Black Lives Matter sign was set alight in the same county.
“These acts remind us how much work needs to be done in the struggle for equality and the fight against hate.”
The group said they value “dignity, safety and mutual respect for all people”, and urged anyone who has experienced or witnessed a hate crime in the area to come forward.
The Pride flag was burned just weeks after a Black Lives Matter sign was set on fire in the region.
The fire was quickly extinguished, and local police are investigating it as a hate crime.
The Westchester County Human Rights Commission denounced the burning of the Black Lives Matter sign, and noted that it had occurred shortly after a nearby incident where a spray-painted noose was left outside an African-American family’s home.