UNC students restore American flag that had been replaced with Palestinian flag
'Fox & Friends Weekend' co-hosts Pete Hegseth and Will Cain discuss the scene on UNC Chapel Hill campus after students erected an American flag and sang the National Anthem in response to the ongoing anti-Israel protests.
Rep. Pat Fallon, R-Texas, praised the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill fraternity brothers for displaying "extreme courage" and "deep patriotism" after they defended the American flag from an anti-Israel mob on campus.
In a letter addressed to "the Brothers of Pi Kappa Phi" and obtained by Fox News Digital, Fallon commended the group of students who stepped in when anti-Israel agitators tried to replace the American flag with a Palestinian flag.
UNC Chancellor Lee Roberts ordered police to return the American flag, but activists, some of whom were not affiliated with Chapel Hill, tried to take the flag down a second time. A group of fraternity brothers and other students took immediate action to stop Old Glory from hitting the ground. A photo of the moment went viral on social media.
UNC STUDENT WHO DEFENDED AMERICAN FLAG FROM CAMPUS MOB ‘HONORED TO GIVE BACK TO THE NATION’
UNC Chapel Hill students hold up the American flag during a campus protest on Tuesday, April 30, 2024. Anti-Israel agitators replaced the American flag with the Palestinian one during the demonstration. (Parker Ali/The Daily Tar Heel)
"Your actions are not only commendable, but should be lauded from sea to shining sea!" Fallon wrote in the letter published Friday. "You've set a very high bar for American fraternities and university students as a whole. In the face of tumult, danger and hatred, the young men of Pi Kappa Phi set a clear example of American patriotism and stewardship. Thank you!"
As anti-Israel agitators grow increasingly confrontational on campuses across the country, Fallon called out the "spineless administrators," many of whom refused to condemn the protests or hesitated to take immediate action to restore order.
"In this environment, it isn't easy to stand up to spineless administrators, cowardly faculty, and naive students who are blinded by vitriol," the lawmaker wrote. "This leads them to parrot a nihilistic and cynical world view. They celebrate our enemies while condemning America … But you stood in the breach. Motivated by a selfless love of country, you protected a flag that millions have laid their lives down to honor and serve," he told the members of Pi Kappa Phi.
UNC Chapel Hill students hold up the American flag during a campus protest on Tuesday, April 30, 2024. Anti-Israel agitators replaced the American flag with the Palestinian one during the demonstration. (Parker Ali/The Daily Tar Heel)
"You made our country proud," Fallon added. "Clearly, your parents raised you right."
A GoFundMe created for Chapel Hill's Pi Kappa Phi chapter has raised approximately $400,000 as of Thursday. The money will go toward throwing "this frat the party they deserve," according to the posting.
Videos circulating on social media show a group of students singing the National Anthem and chanting "USA" as the American flag was returned to the pole. Before it was removed, the flag had been flying at half-mast after four Charlotte officers were killed in the line of duty Monday.
Rep. Pat Fallon (R-TX) questions witness during a a House House Oversight and Reform Committee hearing, in the Rayburn House Office Building on February 07, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
"When I walked to class, I saw the Palestinian flag raised on our quad flag pole, and was immediately upset at the act that these ‘protesters’ had made," a student in the class of 2027, Guillermo Estrada posted to X on Tuesday. "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."
"When the flag was raised once again, the Greek community began singing the National anthem. As the Chancellor left, the quad erupted into chaos as protesters began removing the flag once again, preparing to destroy it," Estrada continued. "My fraternity brother and others ran over to hold it up, in order for it not to touch the ground. 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."
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The protests at Chapel Hill come as students at elite schools across the country protest against Israel and in support of Gaza amid the ongoing war in the Middle East, with activists setting up encampments on campuses, occupying buildings, clashing with law enforcement and resisting arrest. The protests began at Columbia University and have since spread across the country to schools everywhere from Massachusetts to Tennessee, Texas to California.
Fox News' Hannah Grossman and Audrey Conklin contributed to this report.