American flags vandalized at South Boston memorials

Crime

Local veterans and elected officials held a meeting Wednesday at the Medal of Honor Park in response to the vandalism.

Community members and elected officials are outraged after someone vandalized American flags at three memorials in South Boston.

Acts of vandalism toward the flags were found Wednesday morning at the neighborhood’s Medal of Honor Park, Admiral Farragut Statue, and Korean War Memorial. Photos shared in a community bulletin board depict the flags knocked over, crumpled up, and strewn about on the road nearby.

“Why would someone do this?” Thomas J. Fitzgerald VFW Post 561 said on Facebook. “Do they not know what our flag stands for. The ultimate sacrifice paid by some for our freedom or the pain the families carry who have lost their love ones.”

The act prompted a response from City Councilor Ed Flynn, State Sen. Nick Collins, and State Rep. David Biele, who attended a meeting Wednesday at Medal of Honor Park with local veterans and officials.

“It is unacceptable to cause vandalism to an American flag and/or any veterans memorial,” Flynn wrote in a statement. “These memorials are not just monuments, they are places of remembrance that acknowledge the supreme sacrifice made by these heroic veterans. We stand with our veterans and military families and respect the American flag today and every day.”

Flynn called for an increase in security infrastructure to “protect public assets honoring veterans and help law enforcement hold those accountable who violate the law by defacing them.” He also stated that he filed a report with the Boston Police Department and that a South Boston resident did the same with Massachusetts State Police.

Officers noted that the vandalism occurred sometime between 6 p.m. Tuesday and 6 a.m. Wednesday, according to a Boston police report. No other information about the vandalism was immediately available but both departments are continuing to investigate.