NEW CANAAN — Tom Butterworth said he found the gay pride sign he placed on his front lawn torn up on a property a few houses down on Friday morning.
The town councilman said the staples were removed from the sign, which was found ripped and thrown on the ground outside a neighbor’s home.
“I think this was a reflection of one angry person having a bad week, not of New Canaan as a whole,” Butterworth said. “Society is much more tolerant than in the past, but unfortunately, intolerance still exists. We need to work on that, which is why we put up lawn signs.”
Hilary Ormond, who has been distributing the signs, said this is the second time she has heard of one being stolen or damaged.
New Canaan police Lt. Jason Ferraro said no incidents have been reported to the department.
Ormond has been distributing the signs to celebrate June, Pride month designated to commemorate the Stonewall riots of June 1969. She said this is the second pride sign that she has heard of being stolen or damaged.
“The response from the community has been overwhelmingly positive,” Ormond said of her experiences handing out signs around New Canaan.
Ormond said she has placed almost 150 lawn signs and handed out 75 window clings to local merchants.
“It’s a terrible shame that two signs have been taken, and at least one of those appears to have been vandalized, but that says more about that person or persons than the vast majority of good and supportive people we have here,” Ormand said.
The Chamber of Commerce was “extremely helpful in reaching the merchants,” Ormond added.
“Overall, we are overwhelmed — in a very good way — with the outpouring of support from the community,” Ormond said.
A desire to recognize Pride Month in New Canaan has been “percolating” for a couple of years, Ormond said. Though she identifies as a straight cisgender woman, she has family members and friends who are LGBTQIA, she said.
Ornomd said a few years ago, gay friends who were raising their family in New Canaan “wondered why there was little to no Pride recognition.” That is when they decided to “do something about it.”
Her friends in Darien had been encouraging their town leaders to hang flags on town buildings and community members to display signs at their homes.
“We decided to follow suit,” she said.
