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Zach Gingrich-Gaylord waved a rainbow pride flag in front of his family's home in Wichita, Kansas two months ago so his wife and 11-year-old daughter could show their support for LGBTQ community. On Saturday morning, the family found its flag "completely melted into a plastic bazaar" and the authorities are now investigating the incident as a hate crime.
"I do not have a lot of words to say to anyone who did that," Gingrich-Gaylord told KSNW-TV, the NBC affiliate in Wichita. "They act out of fear, bigotry and intolerance."
Gingrich-Gaylord said he and his family were the first on their street to fly a pride flag. He thinks that's why their house was targeted.
"There was no other vandalism associated," he added. "It was this specific flag on this specific house."
The fire of Saturday's flag – which would have occurred between 1pm and 6pm during the family's sleep – was not the first act of vandalism against Gingrich-Gaylord's symbol of pride. A few weeks ago, the family flag was stolen, but a neighbor found it and returned it. They bought replacement flags in anticipation of never seeing him again, but when their flag came back, they gave the extra flags to the neighbors, who started displaying them at home, said Gingrich-Gaylord at KSNW-TV. .
Nancy and Barry Carroll live in one of the other four flag houses with flags of pride. They were shocked to learn that the flag was burning.
"I thought it was very petty," said Barry Carroll. "It's our intention to scare and scare us."
"It all bothered us," Carroll said.
According to Thomas Witt, executive director of the LGBTQ rights group, Equality Kansas, LGBTQ discrimination has increased in recent years, including theft of pride flags and broken windows.
"It's a campaign to terrorize the LGBTQ community," he said.
As a result of these attacks, Witt said that more and more allies are mobilizing to support the community. Equality Kansas distributed flags in his Wichita center and Gingrich-Gaylord was grateful to see other residents raising them.
"It's the right answer to that, to submerge the conversation with love and respect and not to be silenced by people who are trying to make you fear," Gingrich-Gaylord told KSNW-TV.
Micala Gingrich-Gaylord first stated that she was scared by the flag flare, but she is now proud of the reaction of the community and the police as a result of the l 'incendie et à à à à à à à à à à à à à à à. fire.
She said that she and her family would replace the flag as many times as necessary.
"We are filling something like this with acts of love," she told NBC News on Monday. "We did what we do as a family, we do not react to fanaticism or fascism."
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