2017: St. Johns County homeowner told to take down Blue Lives Matter flag
An Atlantic Beach man -- who describes himself as a proud American -- said he may be evicted if he does not take down his National League of Families POW/MIA flag.
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Phil Kunkle says the management company at Oaks of Atlantic Mobile Home Park has confronted him about it three times. They say it does not follow their rules.
Kunkle moved to Atlantic Beach from Youngstown, Ohio.
“I love this place. I lived here before, that’s why I moved back, because I liked it," Kunkle said.
But he says he never expected to be forced to defend his decision -- to property management company -- to fly the POW/MIA flag in his front yard.
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“They want me to take it down, and I’m not taking it down," Kunkle said. “I have a notice for it that says they would try to evict me for it if I didn’t take it down.”
Kunkle said the flag serves as a tribute to everyone who’s served and made the ultimate sacrifice for this country -- so he’ll take his chances.
“My brother was in Vietnam and he was on the USS Forrestal," Kunkle said. "My dad was in the Coast Guard.”
Management said each resident is only allowed to fly one flag -- and it must be an American flag. Other flags are not allowed.
“I felt degraded," Kunkle said. "It’s terrible that people like that they don’t understand that POW. flags are like the most American flags you can get besides Stars and Stripes."
Kunkle says none of his neighbors have complained about it.