SINGAPORE: In January 2021, a man tore a pride flag and threw it at one of the staff at the Lau Pa Sat branch of SMOL, a health food store.
This year, the flag at SMOL’s Paya Lebar Quarter branch was stolen from the store, yanking it away in the middle of the night, a June 21 TikTok from the eatery showed.
@hungryforsmol After the incident, we approached the mall to view the CCTV footage overlooking our kiosk and confirmed that the flag was removed by force from the outside. In order not to dox the individuals, we have chosen not to post the footage. #pride #pridemonth #fyp
And yet, despite this aggressive act, the good people behind SMOL are showing their “true colours” in keeping with Pride month, telling the thieves that they are accepted.
“Pride month is all about acceptance and respecting one another in spite of our differences. To the person who did this, we accept who you are,” says the founder of SMOL, Ms Charmaine Low, with a smile and the finger hearts gesture.
Moreover, the SMOL team has seen a video of the theft, which means they know who the thieves are, but have refused to make it public.
“After the incident, we approached the mall to view the CCTV footage overlooking our kiosk and confirmed that the flag was removed by force from the outside.
In order not to dox the individuals, we have chosen not to post the footage.”
Ms Low said in the video, “Someone stole the flag hanging outside our store,” despite her efforts in securely fastening the flag after the flag-throwing incident in 2021.
“I put 4 clips on the inside of the door and made sure that the eyelets were on the inside so that you can’t yank it out from the outside.”
Someone had managed to pull the flag out in the middle of the night, clips and all, and when the kitchen team arrived the next morning, they saw the broken clips all over the floor.
“This is not paranormal activity, okay? It’s criminal activity,” Ms Low added. /TISG
LGBT in Singapore — Targeting the invisible shackles that bind the community