A $465,000 frat party? Effort to honor UNC Greeks after flag protest raises questions.

A group of UNC fraternity brothers photographed protecting an American flag as it was being pulled from its pole during Chapel Hill protests have drawn nationwide praise from some and an online fund-raising effort that promised an even sudsier award:



A “rager” of a party worth more than $465,000.

But questions remain about who is behind the fund-raiser and what all that money would actually go to.

Here’s what we know:

The protest and the flag

Protesters set up tents on the Chapel Hill campus starting Friday, forming a “Gaza Solidarity Camp” that drew hundreds of people and demanded that UNC disclose investments related to Israel and divest from them.

Police broke up the camp Tuesday morning and charged 36 people, including 10 students. Later Tuesday, a physical clash broke out when protesters returned to the site on the campus main quad. Protesters removed the large American flag there and replaced it with a Palestinian flag, leading to an hour-long struggle.

During that struggle, several students were photographed holding the American flag off the ground, standing in a ring. Many of them were members of UNC’s Pi Kappa Phi fraternity.

“Today was a sad yet empowering day at Chapel Hill,” wrote Guillermo Estrada in a post on X. “When I walked to class, I saw the Palestinian flag raised on our quad flag pole, and was immediately upset at the act that these ‘protestors’ had made.”

Sen. Ted Budd, the North Carolina Republican, shared a photo of the students holding the flag on X and wrote, “Proud of these UNC students. Right on!”

The fund-raising for the ‘rager’

By Wednesday, a GoFundMe page appeared praising Pi Kappa Phi’s flag defense, calling protesters “an unwashed Marxist horde” and raising money to pay for a “rager” party in honor of the “triumphant Brohemian” frat brothers.

“Commie losers across the country have invaded college campuses to make dumb demands of weak university administrators,” the post read. “But amidst the chaos, the screaming, the anti-semitism, the hatred of faith and flag, stood a platoon of American heroes.

“Armored in Vineyard Vines and Patagonia, fueled by Zyn and White Claws, these triumphant Brohemians protected Old Glory from the unwashed Marxist horde — laughing at their shrieks and wails and shielding the Stars & Stripes from Soviet missiles.”

Originally, the post from John Noonan sought $15,000 — a total that would prove modest.

As post goes viral, money pours in

The plea for funds drew donations nationwide — one for $10,000.

“America, (heck) yeah boys,” wrote donor Bobby Phillips. “Here’s a case of Miller Lite from a thankful patriot in Indiana.”

Country singer John Rich wrote on X that he’d like to perform a free concert “for the boys who protected the American flag at UNC.”

The funding goal for the “rager” soon rose to $50,000, then $100,000. By 6:30 p.m. Thursday, the total had topped $465,000.

“We are overwhelmed by you glorious, Patriotic Americans who value good beer and great times,” read the post in a Wednesday evening update. “We are in contact with multiple leaders from fraternities whose members helped defend the flag, including Alpha Epsilon Pi and others, in addition to Pi Kappa Phi. Our gratitude goes to all of them and we will update supporters on what comes next.”

What GoFundMe says

On Thursday morning, a GoFundMe spokesman said the company’s “Trust & Safety Team” had reached out to the organizer for more information.

“All funds remain safely held by our payment processors during this process,” Cornell Wedge wrote in a statement.

“At GoFundMe, being a safe and trusted place to give and receive help is our top priority. We have a team of experts working around the clock to review fundraisers and work directly with organizers to help prevent misuse and ensure compliance with our Terms of Service. This process includes both a human review from our world-class Trust & Safety experts as well as technical tools designed to catch misuse.”

Wedge said the money, once processed, would be “released only to the person named as the recipient of the funds.”

“Before funds are transferred to the beneficiary, their personal information must be verified,” the statement said. “If any questions arise, our processors will hold the funds until the recipient is verified.”

Who will get the money?

On Thursday, the description on the GoFundMe page was changed to say “John Noonan is organizing this fundraiser on behalf of Susan Ralston.”

Ralston has deep conservative connections, having served as former special assistant to President George W. Bush and former deputy to Karl Rove, who was Bush’s senior advisor until Rove resigned in 2007. Ralston resigned from her post with Rove in 2006, following a House ethics report showing she was a conduit for messages between Rove and lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who later pleaded guilty to conspiracy and other charges related to a corruption investigation.

Ralston was never accused of wrongdoing. She now is president of SBR Enterprises in Virginia, which specializes in public relations, event planning, and government and political consulting.

Ralston acknowledged being asked by GoFundMe organizers to plan the fraternity party when The News & Observer reached her by phone Thursday. She declined to comment about the fundraiser or the party.

What the fraternity says

A national Pi Kappa Phi spokeswoman said Wednesday that the fraternity did not set up the fundraiser and is not endorsing it.

In Chapel Hill, the local fraternity said it didn’t know the organizers and was trying to contact them.

No answers from the fundraiser organizer

Reached through GoFundMe, Noonan referred questions to Max Meyer, a blogger who describes himself on X as a propagandist and westerner.

Meyer did not respond to an email with questions Wednesday, but he effusively praised the fraternity and its flag efforts, posting about the event on X:

“It was a fraternity alliance that defended the flag. I am in contact with all of the chads. And I’m on my way to North Carolina to bring the story to you.”

In another update on GoFundMe on Thursday afternoon, Noonan posted, “A programming note for all of you who bleed red, white, and blue. We have identified a world class event planner named Susan and she is already hard at work. She worked in the White House and knows what she’s about.

“Another fine American is wheels down in North Carolina tonight and working to identify all of our Noble Born brochachos, who stood down the frumpy hordes with nothing more than a pastel shirt and a smile. Go Fund has dispatched a member of their team to work closely with us and ensure your donations do as God intended — to show these guys enough fireworks to blow their Oakley aviators straight off their faces.”

No word yet on invites.