A bulletin board which promoted transgender equality was abruptly pulled from a Michigan high school when Christian parents posted a complaint on Facebook.
The Gay Straight Alliance posted the notice at the high school in Marshall, Michigan, as a way of celebrating Transgender Equality Day. The school originally said it requested the bulletin board be taken down because of a two-week limit on posted notices. But the school district later admitted it was due to complaints from some parents.
Kate Samra of the Gay Straight Alliance confirmed that the pro-transgender board was removed because a few parents were upset:
?This was surrounding a Facebook incident surrounding a mother that was very upset. She thought it was inappropriate for the school setting and that it didn’t exhibit Christian values.?I met with the principal of my school today and he said he felt like the situation needed to be diffused, so that’s why he did take the board down.”
The Marshall school?superintendent, Randy Davis, also said that pressure was exerted from some parents:
?We have had complaints once in a while from a parent about that. In our environment, it doesn’t feel like there’s any controversy at all; in the world of Facebook, it seems like it’s on fire.?The parents expressed concern about our practice of allowing groups with alternative lifestyles to openly display posters in the school.?The administration underscored student rights to freedom of speech and equal access. The meeting was a reaction to our practice, and not the reason for changing the bulletin board.?
On Monday, the students at the high school showed the adults what it means to be tolerant and exhibited the true spirit of Christian love by protesting the removal of the controversial bulletin board and celebrating Transgender Visibility Day in spite of the intolerance of a few parents. One of the students,?Riley Moreau, remarked:
?It seemed like they were speaking for the student body, like we didn’t accept transgender people or we’re that close-minded. And it’s not true. This is an act of solidarity to show them that they matter, they’re a part of us.?
And once again, we see children demonstrating to adults the real meaning of love and understanding. Or in a language the parents who complained might better comprehend:
“The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.” Isaiah 11:6.
