As Pride month comes to an end, a group of young men were caught tearing Pride flags in Atlanta, Georgia, and are now facing hate crime charges. However, their arrests have sparked an online debate between liberals and conservatives who insist that tearing down pride flags doesn’t constitute hate crimes.
CCTV footage of the incident, showing the men committing the act in the wee hours of the day, was shared on TikTok. The six-man group arrived on scooters at a rainbow-painted intersection in Midtown Atlanta, famously called the heart of Atlanta’s LGBTQ district.
In no time, the youths began slashing pride flags with a knife and quickly fled the scene before the police arrived. However, by morning, the authorities confirmed that four suspects had been arrested.
The captured suspects included Logan Matthison and Ahmed Meckhouri, both 18-year-olds, 17-year-old Geami McCarroll, and an unnamed 16-year-old. Now, the Atlanta police department reported that it was considering charging the group for hate crimes, which would mean longer jail sentences.
According to a hate crime law in Georgia, passed in 2020, offenses inspired by the victim’s sexual orientation and gender identity can carry more penalties. A representative from the police department said investigations are still ongoing as to whether the suspect will be charged with hate crimes.
“We’re still looking at all avenues as far as how that charge will possibly come out,” the rep said, per The New York Times. Additionally, all four were charged with obstruction, criminal damage to property, conspiracy, and prowling.
Social media users responded to the news with different arguments. While some users supported the youths, arguing that tearing a pride flag was similar to burning an American flag, others criticized the youths.
One individual wrote, “But it’s ok to burn an American flag, I’m pretty sure hate is equally involved in both cases.”
A second person criticized liberals, writing, “So arrested for destroying pride flags but rioters and the left can destroy the American flag all they want and get away with it.”
On the opposite side, other social media users condemned the men. One individual remarked, “Noticed how they did this late at night, no one around, like what’s the point of doing this if you’re not brave enough to do it out in public.”
Another user emphasized the reason for their arrest. The user wrote, “Everyone in the comments is missing the fact that they TORE DOWN the flags. They weren’t their flags. They were arrested for destruction of property that wasn’t theirs.”
The two other suspects are still at large, and investigations are still ongoing.
