Dimitris Kouimtsidis
A PRIDE flag hanging from a town hall in Castilla-La Mancha has been set on fire by vandals.
On Friday, the LGBTQ flag had been installed on the Ajofrin town hall in Toledo, in order to celebrate Pride day on June 28.
Mere hours after the flag was hoisted, homophobes decided to vandalise it, according to Efe reports.
Maria Isabel Alguacil, the town’s Mayor has publicly condemned the act and said: “We assume that nowadays people are less intolerant, but no.”
She also stressed the importance that society works ‘hard’ with families, schools and the media so that from a young age children are taught that homosexuality is ‘normal and okay’.
The Mayor has criticised the burning of ‘a symbol of equality’ and has thanked the residents of Ajofrin, who have shown their support and rejected this act of homophobia.
The town hall proceeded to defy this hate act and displayed a larger rainbow flag as a sign of solidarity.
PSOE has taken to Twitter to comment on the event: “Burning the flag that represents the best of a society – equality, diversity, tolerance – leaves those who violate it on the sidelines.
“This country has taken a giant step towards equality, if they don’t understand that, they are on the wrong side of history.”
The Castilla-La Mancha branch of PSOE has also condemned the burning of the flag on Twitter: “Equality is a universal value inherent in the human being and these attacks of intolerance, therefore hurt us all.
“Our condemnation today is proportional to our commitment to the rights of LGTBQ people.”
This comes as Cadiz town hall was ordered to remove the rainbow flag from its building last week, after a court ruled that only official flags are allowed on government buildings.
