A Wisconsin woman was shoveling snow at her home on Veterans Day when she noticed flags hanging from her home were destroyed.
Madison homeowner Brigitte Buchmeier saw both her American flag and President Donald Trump flag were destroyed, and the side of her East Washington Avenue house had been graffitied, WISC-TV reported. The spray-painted message read, “Make a racist son” and included satanic symbol next to it.
“They destroy your property, destroy your beliefs and this has what America has become now,” Buchmeier said.
Buchmeier took to Facebook to share a video of the damage. In the video, she said, “I don’t care what anybody believes or wants as far as a president, this is not OK.”
She continued, “I don’t care what other people think. I display my pride in my American flag and my beliefs. This is wrong in so many ways. It really saddens me that we have come to this.”
While Buchmeier said she could understand why the vandals destroyed her Trump flag, she said she could not understand the vandalism against the American flag and was surprised someone in the town of Madison would destroy the American flag.
She said, “It just breaks my heart that somebody would do this to something that means so much to so many people. Everyone and every family that I know has someone that’s served or is currently serving, and we are so appreciative of those men and women and you just made a statement that that means nothing to you.”
Po Ivey, Buchmeier’s neighbor, said he doesn’t agree with his neighbor’s political beliefs but said she’s a “nice person.”
“I think that whoever saw that made assumptions, a lot of assumptions and probably haven’t met her before. I’d say it’s just as hateful an act as being racist,” Ivey said told ABC 27 News.
Buchmeier added, “It’s hard to hold back tears that I cannot even be the American that I want to be.”
She described the vandalism incident is an attack on the country as a whole.
“And you don’t know how sad that made me that they took November 11 – Veterans Day – to prove a point that they care nothing for our flags, nothing for our veterans,” Buchmeier said.
She said she received gracious offers from people willing to help repair the spray-painted side of her home and replace her flags.
Buchmeier said she has filed a police report regarding the vandalism. Madison Police are asking anyone who might have some information on this crime to please contact the Madison Area Crime Stoppers.
