Vandals burned two flags flying on a flagpole outside the headquarters of the Heartland Institute, a free-market think tank known for its climate skepticism.
Heartland spokesperson Jim Lakely said the blackened remains of the American flag and yellow Gadsden flag, which features the phrase “Don’t Tread on Me,” were discovered Thursday morning on the damaged flagpole in Arlington Heights, Illinois.
He said nobody has claimed responsibility for the attack, but he blamed it on “radical leftists” opposed to the conservative nonprofit advocacy group’s mission.
“I always knew this day would come — the day some radical leftists decide to take their hatred of The Heartland Institute and its mission to advance freedom and turn it into ‘direct action,’” Mr. Lakely said Thursday in a website post.
The two flags have flown over the building since Heartland moved to the Chicago suburb in 2015.
Mr. Lakely said he reported the arson to police, but “the kind officer who came out said it’s unlikely the perps will be identified, and I knew that.” The building’s security cameras point at the doors, not the flagpole.
He said the “notion that this is a just ’random’ act of vandalism and arson is not plausible.”
“Heartland was clearly targeted because of the public positions we take as a conservative think tank — and because we’re the most-prominent organization in the world combatting climate alarmism, as well as the insidious spread of socialism around the globe,” Mr. Lakely said.
Organizations associated with conservative causes have been hit with a wave of vandalism in the last few years.
More than 80 pro-life offices and pregnancy centers have been attacked since the May 2022 leak of the Supreme Court’s draft opinion overturning Roe v. Wade. The radical pro-choice group Jane’s Revenge has taken credit for some of the attacks.
The CatholicVote tracker has also listed attacks on 318 Catholic churches ranging from graffiti to arson since May 2020, the outbreak of mass Black Lives Matter protests and rioting following the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police.
Heartland was targeted by climate protesters when it was located in downtown Chicago, but the flag-burning represents the first attack on the Arlington Heights location.
Mr. Lakely said the two flags, which had flown outside the building since 2015, would be replaced promptly.
“This will not deter us in the least. In fact, I’ve already ordered larger flags to replace them, which will arrive next week,” he said. “If anyone burns those, we’ll replace them, too. The American and Gadsden flags will fly over Heartland’s global headquarters forever.”
• Editor’s note: Jim Lakely is a former reporter for The Washington Times.
• Valerie Richardson can be reached at vrichardson@washingtontimes.com.
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