Trustees with the York Catholic District School Board (YCDSB) have voted against a motion that would have allowed Pride flags to fly in front of its education centre in June.
The YCDSB voted 6-4 against the motion on Monday night.
Chair Frank Alexander was one of the trustees who voted not in favour and had a few people removed from the room after the announcement was made.
Over the past three months, police needed to be called to YCDSB meetings to deal with hecklers from the gallery — many of them shouting directly at students fighting for the Pride flag to fly over their schools in York Region.
In April, security guards removed audience members following the first speaker, but the ruckus spilled out into the hallway, where angry parents could be heard chanting, “Shame!”
The school board took several precautions to help prevent the chaos from past meetings. Those attending were asked to sign in and show identification at the door. They were also given a letter outlining the code of conduct.
Tristan Coolman with Pflag York Region has stood in solidarity with the students and said the YCDSB had an opportunity to prove its support for the 2SLGBTQ+ community.
“There is no better time to try and take advantage of the momentum and to take advantage of what’s happening culturally in the world and try to make positive change in your local community,” said Coolman prior to the meeting.
Despite the heartfelt delegations — including letters and petitions about why it’s so crucial for students and staff to feel represented at their schools — a committee report was presented to the board as a discussion item on Monday.
Within that report, one recommendation was to fly the flag at the Catholic Education Centre — not at schools as many other Ontario boards now do.
Mark Brosens, a YCDSB spokesperson, said the board of trustees controls these guidelines.
“We have a longstanding policy with the YCDSB that says we only fly the Canadian flag on flag poles at board property,” Brosens said in an interview with CityNews. “It’s up to them if they want to change that policy.”
Coolman said his organization hoped that the school board trustees would make a sound decision on behalf of York Region.
