Pride is commonly seen as a month of celebration of 2SLGBTQIA+ culture and the gains in equity that have been long fought for and achieved since that first Pride march in June of 1970.
What is not always remembered is that the first march followed a year after a riot that broke out at the Stonewall Inn on June 28, 1969.
Unfortunately, the last couple of years Pride has once more felt more like a riot than a celebration. This is due to the exponential rise in hate against the inclusion of topics focused on diversity, including SOGI, in B.C. schools fueled by misinformation. This hate is sadly filtering into the attitudes and behaviours of students and parents within our school communities, resulting in queer teachers, students and families being targeted and feeling unsafe.
As such, being the SOGI coordinator of schools in the Delta School District has been challenging to say the least. My role is to help teachers and administrators create school communities that are safe for everyone, specifically as it relates to 2SLGBTQIA+ experiences.
We do this through education, which is why it is crucial to include lessons focusing on diversity at all grade levels, in all classes.
We do this by reminding people that diversity includes 2SLGBTQIA+ people, just as it does race, ability, socioeconomics and all forms of marginalization.
We do this by interrupting hateful behaviour consistently in our schools.
We do this by supporting diversity groups in all our schools so that students have a safe place to be themselves.
And yes, we also do this by celebrating. We celebrate our pride in ourselves as a symbol of defiance and resistance to this hate through our district Pride dance, raising a diversity flag at our school board office, and creating visible Pride in the hallways and classrooms in our schools through bulletin board displays and flags that celebrate the many ways we are diverse and beautiful within our communities.
In the end, Pride is a riot and a celebration, as it has been since the very start 55 years ago.
