A group of Orillia Secondary School (OSS) students are upset with the Simcoe County District School Board (SCDSB) after the decision was made this week to replace the Canadian flag in front of the school with the Pride flag.
Chris Hutton, who identifies as being transgender and bisexual, is a Grade 12 student at OSS. As part of a group of students backing the initiative, they started an online petition to put the Canadian flag back outside of the school after hearing numerous concerns from classmates.
"They are very upset that the Canadian flag has been taken down and replaced with the Pride flag," they said. "They are a patriotic bunch of people. They just feel that the Canadian (flag) should be out front of the school at all times."
Hutton says it's important to display the Pride flag, but it should be placed beside or beneath the Canadian flag.
"I've heard from a group of fellow queer kids who are increasingly concerned because there were some talks about some more aggressive people defacing the Pride flag and Pride mural on the ground," they said. "The mural on the ground has taken away money from our school funding as well as the Canadian flag being replaced, which has upset some students."
Since the Canadian flag was replaced, Hutton says there has been an increase in bullying of students from the 2SLGBTQ+ community.
"We are being blamed for the Canadian flag being taken down," they said. "We just want to see it put back up because it’s causing more harm than good."
Hutton says they attend Pride events with friends each year. They believe Pride events should happen in local schools, but Pride "shouldn't take over everything."
"We are very proud of who we are," they said, "but as proud as we are, we are proud that our country has taken these steps and are proud of our country in its entirety."
Hutton feels the Canadian flag represents people of all genders, sexualities and races, as well as those who have defended the country in several wars and conflicts.
"It represents everyone," they said. "Our Pride flag is up in the school all of the time, but I think it should be beneath the Canadian flag as per flag laws or on its own pole."
While Hutton recognizes the school board's efforts for inclusivity through Pride, they say the efforts have only "excluded" students and put them in vulnerable positions.
"We feel more unsafe and uncomfortable in the school when they are forcing Pride upon everyone," they said. "Celebrating and acknowledging it is important, but you can't force it into everyone’s faces."
While the group of concerned students behind the petition have considered taking concerns to school staff, they want to be backed by as much support as possible first.
"There have been issues in the school before where if one person says something, it's not deemed a problem," they said. "There are also rumours that if people brought up these concerns, they could possibly be suspended."
Once the petition gains at least 500 signatures, Hutton and the group of students will take their concerns to school staff.
"We hope they will at least discuss with us the possibilities for change," they said. "We are hoping that if something can happen here, other schools across the board who feel the same way will work on possibly changing things at their school if that's something they want."
Last year, SCDSB education director John Dance told OrilliaMatters every school is expected to fly the Canadian flag on its pole by itself. However, there is a provision that at the discretion of the director of education, other flags may replace the Canadian flag to recognize certain events.
"The challenge we have is when we wish to fly (another) flag, the protocol for flying the Canadian flag is that it does not share a pole," he said.
In 2022, the Pride flag was flown at the SCDSB's administration building in Midhurst for the first time.
Jamie Campbell, the school board's assistant manager of communications, provided the following statement to OrilliaMatters:
"The SCDSB is committed to creating a culture of belonging for all students and staff and providing environments that are inclusive and free from discrimination," notes the statement.
"The SCDSB values inclusive learning and working environments that promote the principles of acceptance. To support these commitments, all schools and worksites in the SCDSB will raise the Progressive Pride flag and Every Child Matters flag at specific times during the month of June to align with Pride Month, National Indigenous History Month, and National Indigenous Peoples Day.
"Raising the Progressive Pride flag in June aligns with Pride Month and is one action we take to demonstrate support and acceptance for members of the 2SLGBTQI+ community," says the statement.
"The request to fly the Progressive Pride flag came through the board’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion department based on feedback received from students and staff. In support of these efforts, and to demonstrate our ongoing support of the 2SLGBTQI+ community, the Progressive Pride flag will be raised at all SCDSB schools from June 1 to June 10, 2024," explains the statement.
"The 2020-21 SCDSB student census reflected that, of those who completed the census, almost 23 per cent of students in Grades 7 to 12 identified as 2SLGBTQI+ or questioning, and that over 5 per cent of our student population self-identify as Indigenous. In addition, many of our staff identify as one or more of these groups. These actions are being undertaken to support these significant communities within our board," the statement notes.
"The SCDSB will continue to bring our communities together through educational programs and other activities. The raising of the Progressive Pride and ‘Every Child Matters’ flags, while respecting the Canadian flag protocols, signals to our community that our schools are safe spaces for all people to be themselves," concluded the statement.
— With files from Jessica Owen
