Their Pride flag was vandalized, so this London family decided to spread messages of love
The couple inspired their neighbourhood to put up signs saying 'all are welcome here'
Charlie and Rachel Giurleo want people to feel welcomed when they visit their London neighbourhood, and they've been doing so by flying a Pride flag on the porch of their Old South home for about three years.
"It's important for me to know that everybody is welcome at my house," Rachel told CBC's London Morning host Rebecca Zandbergen on Monday. "Everybody, no matter where they come from, who they love, or what their gender is."
But on April 13, the couple was saddened to find the rainbow flag vandalized and left in the middle of their street. They said someone tore it off the house and tried to light it on fire.
"I was pretty disappointed. You know that hate is around in the world but you just want to believe that it's not so close to home," said Charlie.
LISTEN | Charlie and Rachel Giurleo join London Morning host Rebecca Zandbergen to talk about responding to hate with love:
The incident motivated the Giurleos to fight the hate with messages of love, they said. So they wrote letters telling people on their street what happened to the flag, encouraging them to display signs of welcoming messages or fly a flag, to show others that love and acceptance is what their neighbourhood represents.
"We said, 'This is not the neighbourhood we know and love and [asked neighbours] to please show that all are welcome here,'" Rachel said.
Rachel says they put signs on their front porch with messages like 'All are welcome here' and 'Love over hate', along with others, provided by the City of London.
The couple dropped off letters in mailboxes around the block with the help of their six-year-old son, Luca.
"We talk with our kids about accepting everybody and that differences are beautiful, but that hasn't always been generally accepted, so flying a flag is one tiny little thing we can do to help make people feel welcome," said Rachel.
Less than two weeks later, the Giurleos have seen four Pride flags in addition to theirs, which they say is flying again, along with nearly 30 signs of welcoming messages on their street.
"I like to think walking down our street is kind of uplifting now, it was so sad those first few days but now I feel great seeing that," said Charlie.
WATCH | Rachel Giurleo talks about responding to vandalism on London Morning:
Although their efforts have brought an outpouring of support from community members, Charlie believes there's still more work to do to combat hate, and that he would like to see more Londoners display such signs on their lawns, he said.
"Even if it's not a Pride flag, it could be an 'Every child matters' or something," Rachel added. "We want to show our kids that it's important to stand up for your beliefs and it's a little bit difficult sometimes, but it's worthwhile and important to do."
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