Bridgnorth Pride flags torn down and stolen - organisers say the theft was caught on CCTV
Flags and bunting flown in Bridgnorth to celebrate Pride have been torn down and stolen, organisers of the town's annual LGBTQ+ march have said.
On Saturday (June 14), Bridgnorth celebrated its second Pride, where more than 250 people gathered in High Town and marched to the town's Castle Grounds for a celebration of diversity and inclusion.
It followed criticism of the town council for replacing the VE Day flag at the town's war memorial with the Pride emblem.
The town's mayor David Cooper defended the move and pointed to backing from the Royal British Legion.
However, after Saturday's Pride march, organisers say that the bunting used to decorate the town's bridge, as well as the Pride flag at the war memorial, had both been either vandalised or stolen.
Huw Rees, a town councillor who organises Pride said: "The first incident was on June 4 with the town council's rainbow flag being stolen from the town flag pole.
"The town council reported it to West Mercia and a spare flag was flown straight away."
He said that was the same flag that the group had complaints about and that the mayor addressed a public question on the subject.
"Then we had flags torn down on Saturday on the day of Pride itself. They were left on the ground or binned," he said.
"Then Giovanni's Ice Cream parlour and Bridgnorth Club had bunting and a flag pulled down on Sunday.
"Bridgnorth Club has CCTV of the man tearing their bunting down and will be reporting him to police.
"Finally the bunting I put up on the bridge was torn down yesterday. It is simple summer bunting, not specifically rainbow bunting - they received hundreds of positive reactions on FB so people really liked them."
