School Reverses Decision to Cover Up ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Protest Images
Update on 5/10/22 at 9:12 p.m.: Seminole County Public Schools decided on Tuesday, May 10, to not cover the images but to instead add a sticker to the page noting the protest was not a school-sanctioned event, which would bring the yearbook into compliance with the district's policies, a spokesperson from the school district told The Advocate in an email.
The original article is below.Students at Lyman High School in Longwood, Fla., learned this week that there would be a delay in receiving their yearbooks — not due to a printing or shipping issue, but because some of the images in them were deemed “out of compliance with [school] board policy.”The photos in question were of the school’s students protesting the state’s “don’t say gay” law back in March before it was passed, reports local NBC affiliate WESH.The censors are planning to put stickers over photos of students holding a “Love Is Love” sign and rainbow flags during the walk-out protest.A message from the school’s principal, Michael Hunter, explained that the event wasn’t sponsored or endorsed by the school. “Earlier today I announced that the distribution of the Lyman Yearbook would be delayed.
The distribution is being delayed in order to assure the yearbook meets all aspects of Seminole County School Board policies, particularly as it pertains to non-school sponsored events contained in school publications,” Hunter wrote in a message distributed Monday. “Unfortunately, the pictures and descriptions that depicted this event did not meet school board policy and were not caught earlier in the review process.
