Rally ahead of Catholic school board meeting protests motion to ban Pride flags at schools

Hundreds of people gathered Monday evening ahead of the Waterloo Catholic District School Board (WCDSB) meeting over concerns the Pride flag could be banned from schools.

The protest began around 5 p.m., and it was a sea of rainbows at the Catholic Education Centre in Kitchener as attendees wore bright colours and waved signs and flags. 

A notice of motion on the board's agenda brought before school board trustees proposed only three flags would be allowed to fly inside or outside the school. The motion is expected to be discussed by trustees at the meeting on April 28.

"No flags may be displayed (fixed to a wall, pole, hanging, or on a sticker) inside of WCDSB facilities other than the flag of Canada, its Provinces and Territories, and the school board logo flag," reads the notice of motion brought forth by trustee Conrad Stanley.  

LISTEN | Hundreds rally against WCDSB motion to ban Pride flags:

The Morning Edition - K-W6:46Hundreds rally against WCDSB motion to ban Pride flags

Ahead of last night's Waterloo Catholic District School Board meeting, there was a rally against a motion to ban Pride flags from flying outside schools. CBC K-W's Karis Mapp heard from people with opposing views on the subject.

While some gathered in support of the motion, others felt the motion would be taking away public displays of inclusive environments. 

"As a society, we cannot be divided. We need to be uniting together as one and love," attendee Tanner Bergsma told CBC News. "By banning the Pride flag, we are in fact dividing and putting segregation as our progress and Canada is better than this."

Joan Grundy, who worked as a teacher an administrator with the school board for 30 years, also attended the rally and said she worked closely to support 2SLGBTQ+ students.

"[I] obviously am very supportive of the flag flying. [I] worked for decades in the board with lots of people to make sure it happened and am just not willing to see it go backwards. Kids need the support," Grundy said.

Despite hundreds of people showing up to the rally, only roughly 150 were able to attend the meeting due to capacity restrictions. 

People who remained outside continued to be heard inside the meeting. They could be heard banging on the windows where the meeting was taking place.

Political support  

Before the meeting, Waterloo MPP Catherine Fife took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to share a public letter to the WCDSB. 

"Students who feel included & safe in their learning environment are more likely to achieve academic success," she said in her social media post. 

"Banning an inclusive symbol like the Pride Flag is cruel and demeaning for students & families who identify as 2SLGBTQIA+."

Kitchener Centre MPP Aislinn Clancy also called on the Minister of Education Paul Calandra to address the motion, calling it homophobic and transphobic. 

"Ontario's education system is publicly funded and must be inclusive of all students," Clancy wrote. "I urge you to intervene and stop this overreach of power and erosion of democracy."

CBC News reached out to Calandra but has not yet received a response. 

Spectrum Waterloo Region, a rainbow community organization that helps support local 2SLGBTQ+ individuals, also issued a statement on its Instagram page saying, "Banning Pride flags in schools doesn't 'protect' kids — it silences them."

Supporting the motion

While majority of the people in attendance were against the notice of motion, Jack Fonseca said he was a WCDSB parent who was all in favour of the motion. 

"I'm a faithful son of the church and I'm here to support the parent delegates here who are asking for LGBT propoganda books to be removed and also in support of the notice of motion," explained Fonseca. "Stop flying political symbols."

When asked what he would say to a student who may no longer feel safe or included at school if the motion were to be passed, he said the Pride flag means more than that. 

"It means support for homosexual marriage, support for gay sexual activity, which the Catholic church opposes and condemns as it signifies the opposition to biblical teaching on sexual morality," he said.

Motion to raise pride flag outside Dufferin-Peel Catholic District schools denied

10 months ago

Duration 3:30

The pride flag will not be allowed to fly outside Dufferin-Peel Catholic District schools this pride month. The board of trustees voted to ban the flags from outside the school. And as Chris Glover reports, there's a new push to remove them inside the schools too.

Pride flag controversy at board

The Pride flag was first raised outside the Waterloo Catholic District School Board office and at all board schools on June 1, 2021. 

Loretta Notten, the then director of education for the Catholic board, told CBC News that day that raising the flag sent a message to the community "that schools are places of inclusion, places of respect, and places where staff, students and parents are valued regardless of how they come to us because we are all wonderfully made in God's eyes."

The move to raise the Pride flag in 2021 came after the board faced criticism in 2020 for plans to raise a flag of its own design, which showed multicoloured figures looking up at a figure of Jesus. Underneath are the words "We are all wonderfully made — we love because he first loved us." The board ultimately decided not to fly any flag for Pride month in 2020.

The motion will be voted on during the next public WCDSB meeting on April 28.