Story at a glance
- A rainbow pride flag at a university religious center was reportedly stolen and replaced with two Confederate flags.
- “This one was just an escalation when the Confederate flag was put up in its place,” campus minister Bret Gresham said.
- “My No. 1 concern is the students and making sure they feel they have a safe environment to come, to live out their faith and be affirmed in who they are,” he continued.
A rainbow pride flag hanging outside of a university religious center was reportedly stolen and replaced with two Confederate flags.
The theft marks the third time in two weeks that the LGBTQ symbol was stolen from Virginia Tech’s Wesley Center, but the first time it was replaced, campus minister Bret Gresham told NBC News.
“This one was just an escalation when the Confederate flag was put up in its place,” Gresham said, adding the campus community’s LGBTQ students were “hurt, saddened and scared.”
“My No. 1 concern is the students and making sure they feel they have a safe environment to come, to live out their faith and be affirmed in who they are,” he continued.
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Blacksburg police confirmed to NBC that it is investigating the matter.
The university said in statement on its website it “strongly rejects all forms of prejudice and discrimination and condemns deliberate, hateful actions.”
“Virginia Tech has made tremendous progress over the last several years in building a more thoroughly diverse and inclusive university,” the statement continued. “Our belief in the inherent dignity and value of every person has never been stronger.
“Yet incidents like this remind us that the journey to equity and social justice – whether in our community or others across the country – will be long and hard-fought. Our community’s strong and swift reaction to this incident gives me confidence in the culture we’re building and our shared commitment to see our vision through.”
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The university shared a list of resources for students affected by the incident.
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