Salt Lake City police say they will not investigate the beat down of a white man by several black males filmed in a hotel parking lot as a hate crime.

Sgt. Robin Heiden claims the black men were motivated to attack the whites over a small Confederate flag decal on their truck parked in Red Lion Hotel lot.

“If the threat or the assault is based strictly on race, religion or those protected classes, then yes it’s a hate crime,” he tells KUTV.

Kelly Leeper, one of the victims, says he and a friend were leaving a concert when they noticed several black males gathered around his truck.

“They started throwing out racial slurs, ‘get out of here you effing white guys you don’t belong here this is our parking lot,'” according to Leeper.

Kimberley Ennis posted video of the altercation on YouTube (NSFW):

Despite the video, Heiden says, “In this case, it’s a little different because the argument over the flag.”

Leeper believes there’s a double standard when it comes to application of hate crime laws.

“I believe if the situations was reversed, and it was a white crowd jumps two black guys over their freedom of speech or their First Amendment rights, then it would be a hate crime in a heartbeat,” he says.