Baltimore bookstore owner says Pride display was vandalized during celebrations

A Pride display outside Charlotte Elliott and the Bookstore Next Door in Hampden was pulled down during Baltimore’s Pride celebrations, turning a storefront decoration into a flashpoint about safety for LGBTQ-affirming businesses. Owner Charlotte Hays Murray said people walked in through the front door of the shop at 837 W. 36th St. and tore down the front display, including rainbow flags, on Saturday, June 13, 2026.

Murray said the incident left her feeling “very upset” and “very vulnerable.” She described the vandalism as a hate crime, and said the timing mattered: Baltimore was in the middle of its annual Pride celebration, with parades, festivals and concerts drawing crowds across the city. The shop, which sells used books, antiques, furniture and vintage clothing, sits on a busy commercial stretch of Hampden where visible window displays are part of the neighborhood’s retail identity.

Baltimore Police said officers responded to the bookstore on June 13 for a disorderly call, but the call was coded out and no report was written. Murray said that response disappointed her. She also said the fallout was not only local, pointing to an outpouring of support that included replacement flags and messages from people as far away as Connecticut.

The incident landed in the middle of Baltimore Pride 2026, which ran June 8-14 under the theme “Charm City Homecoming: Pride Lives Here.” The Pride Parade was scheduled for June 13 from noon to 3 p.m. along Charles Street and North Avenue, while the block party and festival took place June 13-14 at Druid Hill Park. Organizers say Baltimore’s first Pride was a small rally at Charles Plaza in 1975, and the event has grown into a citywide celebration with more than 100,000 attendees and 10-plus events.

For Baltimore, the damaged display is about more than one storefront window. It points to the pressure LGBTQ-owned and LGBTQ-affirming businesses can feel when a symbolic attack lands during a major civic celebration, especially in neighborhoods where retailers rely on visibility, foot traffic and a sense of shared public space. The question now is what response exists, from police to neighborhood leaders to nearby merchants, when hate-driven vandalism interrupts one of the city’s most visible celebrations.