Sudbury students protest cancellation of anti-bullying event
There were protests Monday in response to a decision by the Rainbow District School Board to cancel an anti-bullying event that contained drag elements.
A student says the board told him it was too political and hypersexual.
Billboards and chants of ‘Classroom not a closet’ echo the hurt and anger amongst a group of students at Sudbury’s Lo-Ellen Secondary School.
Ra’Jah Mohamed said the school board decided to cancel the Courage Across Canada Tour for Anti-bullying Campaign International Day of Pink event at the last minute, despite the fact organizers followed proper procedures.
The presentation included elements of drag, which Mohamed said he believes led to the event’s cancellation.
“To call it hypersexual is one thing, calling it political is another thing,” Mohamed said.
“And then to not respond to our concerns and our voices in the petition that has over 2,700 signatures, it’s crazy and it’s completely, completely disingenuous.”
Now, the event will go ahead at College Boreal instead.
Mohamed said it’s the sound of silence from the school board that sends a message of its own to LGTBQ+ students.
“That their queer kids are not going to be listened to, they’re not going to be valued at rainbow district school board schools,” he said.
“That’s clear from how they’ve been treating this -- that’s how they’ve been treating us.”
Grade 10 student Lily Rose Lachance said she was infuriated by the school board’s decision.
“Every bit performative activism they try to shove in our faces as proof they’re progressive, while going around pulling stunts like this,” Lachance said.
“We will not back down. We exist. And that’s not stopping.”
There were protests Monday in response to a decision by the Rainbow District School Board to cancel an anti-bullying event that contained drag elements. (Amanda Hicks/CTV News)
Sudbury MPP Jaime West said the event was to allow people to feel seen.
“I think it’s important to recognize this was age-appropriate, this was educational, this wasn’t going to be a drag show, this was about people feeling represented,” West said.
The Rainbow board declined a request for an interview to comment on the protest, deferring to a statement it sent last week.
Students CTV News spoke with said they would like the school board to offer an apology to acknowledge the hurt they say they’ve caused.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.