First lady highlights attacks on LGBTQ rights at HRCs Los Angeles dinner [Video]

The news of the shooting death of a beloved local merchant this past weekend spread at a speed that would match a seasonal California wildfire in this mountain community above Lake Arrowhead.

Now that community and its LGBTQ community are in mourning and deep pain.

Murdered over a Pride flag, Laura Ann Carleton, 66, is remembered by her husband of 28 years, nine children, family, friends, and fans worldwide, but most especially by the tightknit community where she owned a clothing boutique called Mag.Pi.

A lifelong ally of the LGBTQ community, she proudly flew the instantly recognizable rainbow Pride flag in front of her store. 

Vandals in the what locals have said is an increasingly homophobic community near Lake Arrowhead tore down her flag repeatedly. Each time, she put up a bigger one. She expressed fear to close friends that one day these constant vandalizations would escalate to an in-person altercation. 

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