Staffing Failures Called Out After Middle Schoolers Deface Pride Signs
in Burlington, Massachusetts, a community roughly 15 miles northwest of Boston. The school had designated the Friday as a Pride Month spirit day, sponsored by the LGBTQ+ student group, the Spectrum Club.
As part of the festivities, the halls were decorated with a number of signs and banners made by the club, with messages like "Happy Pride Month" and "Why it's not ok to say 'That's so gay.'" Students and faculty were also encouraged to wear rainbow clothing for the occasion.The trouble began when a subset of students at the school began to lash out against the event, tearing down some of the signs and banners, or defacing them with "inappropriate" stickers, according to Boston.com.
These students also allegedly menaced other students and staff with glares and chants that included things like, "U.S.A. are my pronouns." Some taking part in the protest also wore red, white, and blue clothing and face paint, suggesting a level of coordination.In response to the incident, the school has been called out by the local Burlington Equity Coalition, called for town leaders to take action and demanded the school district fill a diversity, inclusion, and equity (DEI) director position that has been left vacant for nearly a year.
It also asked that the town board reinstate a temporary DEI subcommittee it let expire in February in favor of requesting funds for training."While this is an opportunity for education for the whole community and a chance to remind residents that every person is important and welcome in our town, we also believe that without any direct and concrete action, these incidents will occur again and increase in severity," the coalition wrote in a statement.In response to the incident, Principal Cari Purchase.
