A group of fraternity brothers at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill rallied to defend an American flag from a mob of pro-Palestine protesters on Tuesday, defending the national colors through an onslaught of demonstrators bombarding them with rocks, bottles, and profanities. In response to the display of patriotism from the members of Pi Kappa Phi, social media users launched a fundraising campaign to throw the fraternity a party for the ages—raising more than $100,000 in just seven hours.
UNC-Chapel Hill, like many other major universities across the country, has seen more than a week of protests from students and outside activists calling for an end to the Israel-Hamas war. In several locations, protesters have torn down, vandalized, and burned American flags on campus, replacing them with the flag of the Palestinian territories.
During the protest at UNC, protesters pulled down a flag that was flying at half-mast in commemoration of four Charlotte police officers who were killed in a shootout with a convicted felon last week. Upon learning of the vandalism, university Chancellor Lee Roberts arrived with a police escort and personally raised the American flag again. UNC freshman Guillermo Estrada, who was observing the protest, reported that Roberts and the accompanying officers “were met with profanity, middle fingers, thrown bottles, rocks, and water.”
“I cannot say I am fully educated on the Israel/Palestine conflict, but it upset me that my country’s flag was disrespected in order to advocate for another,” Estrada wrote in an X post.
but it upset me that my country's flag was disrespected in order to advocate for another.
Shortly after, Chancellor Roberts came with police officers to hang the flag once again. They were met with profanity, middle fingers, thrown bottles, rocks, and water.
— Guillermo Estrada (@estradguillermo) April 30, 2024
Once the flag was raised again, members of the campus Greek community began singing the National Anthem. However, as soon as the chancellor left, protesters moved back in to tear down the flag once again.
“My fraternity brother and others ran over to hold it up, in order for it not to touch the ground,” Estrada wrote. “People began throwing water bottles at us, rocks, sticks, calling us profane names. We stood for an hour defending the flag so many fight to protect.”
A now-viral video of the confrontation shows the group of young men standing between the flag and the angry crowd as water flies through the air and protesters jeer.
“My parents started a new life in the United States, a country that has helped them flourish and raise two kids,” he continued. “I grew up in a Military community and saw first hand the sacrifices they make. I will not stand for the disrespect these ‘protestors’ cause for the sake of another country.”
After the picture and Estrada’s posts began circulating on social media, X user John Noonan found out which fraternity they belonged to in the hopes of rewarding them with “a lovely keg of Natty Ice.” This quickly led to the creation of a GoFundMe page entitled: “Pi Kappa Phi Men Defended their Flag. Throw ’em a Rager.” As Noonan stated on the page:
Commie losers across the country have invaded college campuses to make dumb demands of weak University Administrators.
But amidst the chaos, the screaming, the anti-semitism, the hatred of faith and flag, stood a platoon of American heroes. Armored in Vineyard Vines and Patagonia, fueled by Zyn and White Claws, these triumphant Brohemians protected Old Glory from the unwashed Marxist horde — laughing at their shrieks and wails and shielding the Stars & Stripes from Soviet missiles.
These boys… no, men, of the UNC Chapel Hill Pi Kappa Phi, gave the best to America and now they deserve the best.
Help us raise funds to throw this frat the party they deserve, a party worth of the boat-shoed Broleteriat who did their country proud.
Within an hour, the page raised more than $3,000. After eight hours, the page sits at $143,237 as of this writing. For reference, a 15-can pack of Natural Ice beer retails for roughly $9.99—meaning Pi Kappa Phi could afford approximately 215,000 cans with the fund’s current balance.
The fraternity brothers also drew praise from national lawmakers, including former Vice President Mike Pence, Florida Senator Marco Rubio, Georgia Rep. Mike Collins, and Florida Rep. Byron Donalds.
So proud of these courageous young Americans @UNC ! 🇺🇸🇮🇱 https://t.co/Msg3InvRUx
— Mike Pence (@Mike_Pence) May 1, 2024
The pro-Hamas antisemitic freaks make a lot of news
But don’t forget there is still a lot more of us than them pic.twitter.com/jGOMsUN6OI
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) May 1, 2024
🧵MUST READ THREAD🧵
Today, students at UNC Chapel Hill faced down an anti-American mob, helped replace a vandalized American flag, and proudly sang our national anthem.
America is an exceptional nation that is worth defending. https://t.co/l0ERpCdR6F
— Congressman Byron Donalds (@RepDonaldsPress) May 1, 2024
Connor Walcott is a staff writer for Valuetainment.com. Follow Connor on X and look for him on VT’s “The Unusual Suspects.”
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