One of the University of North Carolina fraternity brothers who was seen protecting the American flag from pro-Palestinian protesters says he would have protected it with his life.
A few dozen members of the Pi Kappa Phi fraternity took charge of protecting the flag Tuesday at UNC Chapel Hill, where protesters at one point replaced it with the Palestinian flag.
Dan Stompel, a political science student at the school, told Fox News that he and other fraternity brothers held the flag up for more than an hour until police arrived to clear the hundreds of protesters.
The young man said, “I thought, ‘I’d die for this flag.’ And everyone was like, ‘Yes.’ If they get any closer, we’ll start shaking hands. We’re not going anywhere, I don’t care. They’re going to have to tear me off.” this flag that is on top of my corpse.
Stompel claimed that while he was protecting the flag, protesters tried to intimidate them and began throwing objects at them.
One of the University of North Carolina fraternity brothers who was seen protecting the American flag from pro-Palestinian protesters says he would have protected it with his life.
Dan Stompel, a political science student at the school, told Fox News that he and other fraternity brothers kept the flag up for more than an hour until police arrived to clear the protesters.
‘We are looking in all directions. If something was flying, we would say, “Attention.” We would cover each other. We would take care of other people…
And our arms hurt. It was like an ‘arm day’ [workout] for me that day. That next day there was no gym. It was exhausting. “It was a beautiful moment.”
The student added: ‘This shows that… based on the people there, nice, normal, strong kids who protect the American flag. There is nothing more patriotic, nothing more genuine, nothing more inspiring than that.
After pictures of the fraternity brothers went viral, a GoFundMe was created to throw them a party. As of Thursday morning, it has raised more than $330,123, with billionaire Bill Ackman donating $10,000.
“These guys… no, men, from UNC Chapel Hill Pi Kappa Phi, gave the best to America and now they deserve the best,” the GoFundMe reads.
“Help us raise funds to give this fraternity the party it deserves, a party worthy of the boat-shoe Broleteriat that made its country proud.”
Guillermo Estrada, another of the young people seen protecting the flag, said the day had been “sad but empowering” and that he had become angry after seeing the Palestinian flag raised on campus.
After pictures of the fraternity brothers went viral, a GoFundMe was created to throw them a party.
Footage emerged on social media showing the group of male students clinging to the Stars and Stripes during a protest on Tuesday.
Pro-Palestinian groups threw water bottles at the group holding the flag while masked protesters shouted at them.
He wrote: ‘I can’t say I’m fully informed about the Israel-Palestine conflict, but I was upset that my country’s flag was disrespected to defend another’s. Shortly after, Chancellor Roberts came with police officers to hang the flag once again. They were greeted with curse words, middle fingers, thrown bottles, stones and water.
‘When the flag was raised again, the Greek community began to sing the national anthem. As the Chancellor left, the courtyard erupted into chaos as protesters began to remove the flag once again, preparing to destroy it.
‘My fraternity brother and others ran to hold him up so he wouldn’t touch the ground. People started throwing water bottles, stones, sticks at us, and insulting us. We stood for an hour defending the flag that so many fight to protect.
‘My parents started a new life in the United States, a country that has helped them prosper and raise two children. I grew up in a military community and saw firsthand the sacrifices they make. I will not tolerate the disrespect these “protesters” cause for the good of another country.
‘My LDOC will be memorable knowing that my fraternity brothers and others fought to keep the flag high. But it was also memorable to know that many long to disrespect him.
Despite the group’s best efforts, protesters eventually managed to raise the Palestinian flag on the Chapel Hill campus.
Another member of the fraternity, Alex Jones, said on X: ‘For me, protecting the flag was not about taking a stance within the current discourse between Israel and Palestine.
‘I recognize the pain and suffering experienced by both sides of that conflict. But my decision yesterday to protect the American flag was not about any other nation. It was simply about the importance of our country and the values we believe in.
‘I believe in the right to freedom of expression and peaceful protest. I am honored to give back to the nation that has given me and my family countless opportunities.
‘I owe it all to the hard work of my parents and this great nation, and I am proud to be among those who defended it yesterday. “I’m proud to be an American.”
Despite the massive support they have received, some have pointed to a video showing some of the fraternity members appearing to call a protester a whore while instructing her to “lose some weight.”
Following the chaos on the Chapel Hill campus, classes were canceled for the rest of the day and non-mandatory operations were suspended.
Police intervened to clear a camp and detained some of the protesters in a tense standoff.
The Daily Tar Heel reported that 36 protesters were detained inside the camp.
Six of those 36 were later arrested and transported to the local magistrate’s office, the outlet said, and all six were charged with criminal trespassing before being released. The university said three of those arrested were students, while the other three were not affiliated with the school.
In a statement, Roberts said: “Over the past few months, we have spoken regularly and respectfully with protesters on our campus, consistently supporting their right to assemble and express their views.
‘We have made it clear that students and community members can gather and make their voices heard, but University policies must be followed.
‘During the events of recent weeks, student protesters respected our policies.
‘That changed on Sunday afternoon when protesters, including outside activists, backtracked on their commitment to comply with these policies, including invading classroom buildings overnight.
“This group has made it clear that they will no longer even consider our requests to respect University policies and have ended our attempts to engage in constructive dialogue.”
Similarly, New York City police restored the American flag after City College of New York protesters raised a Palestinian flag on campus.
Footage taken on the ground shows an officer tossing the flag aside before raising Old Glory on the flagpole.
At a news conference Wednesday morning, Mayor Eric Adams chastised schools for allowing the flag to be flown.
He said: “Those are our flag people, it may be okay for some people, but not for me.” My uncle died defending this country.
‘It is despicable that schools allow another country’s flag to fly in our country. So blame me for being proud to be an American. “We’re not going to give up our way of life.”
