AURORA, Colo. (KDVR) – You might say it’s a sign of the times.
Drive through any Colorado neighborhood and you’ll see signs in front yards, especially with election day right around the corner.
However, this year many of those signs are being targeted by vandals, regardless of the message.
Scott Kahler put up a sign in his front yard thanking doctors, nurses, medical staff, police officers, first responders and dispatchers. He says he walked outside one morning to discover the sign torn down and vandalized, along with several solar lights set up to illuminate it.
“I was definitely surprised. There’s a lot of traffic through here and we didn’t expect that to happen at all,” Kahler explained.
However, he says he was even more shocked when an Aurora police officer showed up and recommended that he take down the sign, along with a thin blue line flag and several bumper stickers on his truck supporting police and firefighters.
“I think it started with a we appreciate you supporting us, but for your own safety and your family’s safety and the safety of police officers, it’s best to take it down,” Kahler, a former firefighter, said.
Meanwhile, not too far away, a struggle over another sign is also taking place.
A woman, who asked FOX31 to hide her identity, says she fears she will be targeted by vandals because of her support for Black Lives Matter.
She has a Black Lives Matter sign that she has been hesitant to display in her yard, after seeing others in the neighborhood spray painted with graffiti.
“We did plan to put it up. It makes me sad. I live here. These are my neighbors. It makes me very sad,” she said.
FOX31 asked Aurora police if they have seen an uptick in vandalism cases because of yard signs. The department did not respond to that question directly, instead sending this statement:
“This is obviously an election year and tensions can be high. We respect and recognize the diverse views of our many residents and hope that others will too. No one should ever be targeted for vandalism, theft, assault, or any other crime, just because they have a different political, cultural, or religious view than you. We remind everyone to be courteous and show respect for each other.”
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