Protestors associated with the group Students for Justice Palestine at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill tore down the American flag on Thursday outside the armory and replaced it with the Palestinian flag.
According to student accounts, the group marched throughout campus on Thursday, vandalizing walls with spray-painted messages along the way. The demonstration ended at the ROTC building, where an American flag was waving out front.
Demonstrators damaged the ROTC building on campus with phrases including, ‘Israel bombs, USA pays,’ and ‘End the war machine.’ Other messages sprayed inside buildings read ‘Death to US’ and ‘Google kills,’ as a career fair took place on campus with Google.
“Students for Justice in Palestine – a suspended club at UNC – protested on campus today by marching through buildings while classes were ongoing,” described Matthew Trott, President of UNC College Republicans. “At the end of their protest, they reached the ROTC building. They took down the American flag there and replaced it with a Palestinian flag. Police arrived shortly after, but the protestors had already dispersed.”
The American flag was quickly replaced and the ROTC building was promptly repainted. The chaotic scene follows a whirlwind spring semester at college campuses across the nation. At Chapel Hill, frat brothers upheld the American flag in the spring amid SJP demonstrations that attempted to replace it with the Palestinian flag. The viral moment led to a private concert hosted by several country stars to recognize the young men for their dedication to protecting the American flag.
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During this week’s campus protest, an individual was attacked by the protestors as he walked by the group, as shown in a video below. A counter-demonstration with signs that said “Jesus saves” occurred simultaneously, according to reports.
“Peaceful protests are a hallmark of our society and can encourage and facilitate positive discourse, but it is unfortunate that the protesters chose to vandalize public property and desecrate the American flag instead of using a more positive method for dialogue,” Trott added.