A few months ago, there were a couple of dozens of fraternity brothers at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill who defended the American flag during spring semester campus unrest and prevented it from touching the ground. Now, they are being rewarded with a prty that they deserved.
Around US$ 500,000 was raised by a third party through a GoFundMe page for the college men and promised their supporters a "rager." Even country singer John Rich offered his services to host a concert in their honor.
That concert turned into a large show featuring multiple artists and bands including Big & Rich, Aaron Lewis, John Ondrasik and Lee Greenwood. More than 2,000 invited Chapel Hill attendees are expected to show on Monday, 9 September.
"I was so impressed that, first of all, someone had taught them . . . that you never let the American flag touch the ground, under any circumstances," Rich told Fox News Digital when asked about his impression of the photo in May. "Somebody raised these guys correctly. They understand what's going on."
The flag incident happened in May, when anti-Israel agitators set up an encampment on the quad, successfully replacing Old Glory once before UNC Chancellor Lee Roberts responded with law enforcement officers to return the American flag to its place. When activists, some of whom were not affiliated with the nation's first public university, attempted to take it down a second time, a group of male students — including members of multiple fraternities — stepped in.
The fraternities included in the American flag moment included Pi Kappa Phi, AEPi, Delta Upsilon, Delta Kappa Epsilon, Phi Gamma Delta, and Zeta Beta Tau, according to the GoFundMe.
"We told you our intent was to send any excess funds leftover from the party to worthy causes, entities that are consistent with the theme of the fundraiser. Charities proposed by the frats include: Back the Blue NC, Wounded Warrior Project, Children of Fallen Patriots, and Zeta Beta Tau Foundation to Combat Anti-Semitism. Honoring donor intent continues to be Pints for Patriots' north star," a June update on the GoFundMe page reads. "We are excited for Labor Day. More updates and surprises to follow in the weeks to come!"