Pride Flags Stolen in Los Olivos
Thefts Take Place Amid Rainbow Crosswalks and Pride Fest Weekend
Flags are an issue once again in Los Olivos after two Pride flags and a State of Hawai’i flag were stolen between Wednesday evening and Thursday morning, the Sheriff’s Office reported on Friday.
Steven Guevara said he had arrived to work at Solminer Wine Company on Thursday morning and was thrown off when he saw the business’s flagpole bent and destroyed where a Pride flag had hung the day before.
“I noticed it was missing right away,” he said, and was concerned that it would affect an event planned for later in the day. “We want to make this a safe space for everyone,” he said, and the event had gone off well.
Next door at Kaena Wine, Robert Chetwood said their Hawai’ian state flag had been taken by the thieves. “We had Pride flags in the windows,” he said. “Everyone’s pissed off because the crosswalks got painted” — Los Olivos painted rainbow colors across the sidewalks to celebrate Pride month — which a “small amount of people” in the tiny town, population 838, were angry about.
“I think it’s absolutely ridiculous,” Chetwood said. “We keep flags up year around. It’s not a statement, but we’re inclusive,” he said, indicating that the flag-stealing had started last year at St. Mark’s Church.
Last July, two men ages 18 and 19 were arrested and charged with a misdemeanor after stealing a Pride flag from St.-Marks-in-the-Valley, the Episcopal church in Los Olivos. The two were also accused of taking a flag from a private home in Santa Ynez, and they allegedly had burned one of the flags. The two pled not guilty, and their cases are awaiting trial.
The Sheriff’s Office stated a third business had lost a Pride flag, as well, and was asking for video from the night from anyone in the vicinity of Grand and Alamo Pintado avenues. The Sheriff’s substation can be contacted at (805) 686-5000, and anonymously at (805) 681-4171 or SBSheriff.org.
Guevara noted that on Saturday, a Pride Fest will be held in nearby Solvang. “We’re really excited to celebrate it tomorrow, and to celebrate inclusivity in the valley,” he said.
“We put the flag back up,” Guevara added. “We take it in in the evening now.”
