(Campaign Life Coalition) — Campaign Life Coalition (CLC) has organized two important events on June 1 to push back against LGBT “Pride” Month.
First, a National “Pride” Flag Walk-Out Day in which parents keep their kids home from school for the day in protest of raising the sexualized symbol. Second, a one-hour PRAY-IN at the offices of Catholic Bishops along with other locations.
READ: Canadian parents urged to keep children home from school on June 1 to protest ‘Pride Month’
I need you to participate in these events so we send a powerful message to school boards… and spiritual leaders!
Jessica’s story
I want to share with you a real-life example of a Christian student who was subjected to feelings of fear, anxiety, humiliation and bullying because of a school-wide assembly that took place at her elementary school to honor the raising of the LGBT Pride flag.
The female student, whom we’ll call Jessica to protect her identity, was in Grade 8 at the time, in a Toronto public elementary school.
Jessica sent us her testimony, which she wrote out after the entire student body – more than 1,000 children from K to 8 – were forced to participate in an LGBT “Pride” flag ceremony.
UPDATE (05/30/23): Major victory as York Catholic District School Board votes against raising LGBT flag
Your committment to this campaign has paid off – please continue circulating the petition far and wide, and read below about our huge victory at YCDSB thanks to people like you.
(LifeSiteNews) – During a May 29 York Catholic District School Board (YCDSB) meeting, trustees voted 6-4 against flying the pro-LGBT flag atop of its schools and other buildings in celebration of so-called “Pride Month”, in a move that has been met with pleasant surprise by pro-family advocates.
While the decision brought cheers from the crowd, some angrily shouted in protest and had to be escorted out by YCDSB security.
“The Cross represents all!” Myles Vosylius, a former student at Cardinal Carter Catholic High School in Aurora, Ontario, tweeted, celebrating the decision.
“The cross represents all!” – Faithful Catholic attending the @YCDSB meeting tonight, where the victorious decision was made NOT to fly the ‘pride’ flag! #YCDSB #CdnPoli #OnPoli pic.twitter.com/CSNCEQbS0c
— Myles Vosylius (@TheMylesV) May 30, 2023
While the YCDSB represents a victory for faithful Catholics in York region, many Catholic school boards have caved to pressure by LGBT activists and will fly “pride flags” during the month of June. However, increasingly, Ontario parents are fighting back as hundreds of students, reportedly predominantly Muslim, stayed home earlier this month when their schools flew the flag.
Parents have also begun to speak out against LGBT agenda being promoted to their children in schools. Pro-LGBT trustee for the Waterloo Catholic District School Board (WCDSB) Wendy Ashby recently resigned after over 3,000 parents petitioned for her ousting.
Similarly, last month, a group of young Canadians protested a school-sponsored drag queen event in front of York Mills Collegiate Institute in Toronto.
Furthermore, Campaign Life Coalition is calling for parents to keep their children home from school on June 1 to protest schools flying the “pride flag.”
“Parents need to keep up the pressure, just like this, right across the country!” Fonseca encouraged.
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As Catholics, we are taught that we must love our neighbour and treat every individual as a child of God, accepted with respect, compassion and sensitivity.
Parents make a clear choice when they decide that their children will attend a Catholic school. They rightly expect that trustees, principals, teachers all partners in education will ensure that Catholic teaching is presented, lived and infused in all that we do. In that regard, the appropriate symbol that represents our faith, and the inclusion and acceptance of others, is the cross, which is visible at the entrance of every Catholic school. It is the primary symbol of our Christian faith.
We have created this petition to express opposition of flying the pride flag at schools for the month of June. Our kids should not be forced to celebrate anyones sexuality, and a flag will do nothing to keep anyone more safe. Its nothing more than a symbol of sexual celebration, completely inappropriate.
Catholicism and parental rights are being threatened, and we will not allow teachers who are LGBTQ to influence our children.
We are not homophobes. We are trying to shield our children from any sexual ideologies, both gay and straight. Children are minors who have a right to a normal and innocent childhood. We are not STAKEHOLDERS. We are parents. EQUITY is not and will never be the same as EQUALITY. Inclusion means EVERYONE and the York Region Catholic District School Board & its Union members are infringing upon our religious beliefs by suffocating our children with woke political agendas & indoctrinations when they should be focusing on educating our kids!
We love all humans equally. Hate is the wrong word to describe parents feelings about the climate in schools today. Parents protesting the pride flag at school do not harbour any negative feelings towards the LGBTQ+ community. We do however feel that their rights seem to supersede everyone elses. We also believe that kids should never learn about sex at school and we condemn any classroom discussion or public display that encourages or promotes gender confusion and same sex lifestyles in a classroom setting. We also strongly condemn the nature of several library books that contain sensitive material on homosexuality and transgender issues in elementary school libraries. Similarly, we harbour no contempt for transgenders as individuals but their insistence on using female-only spaces is invasive.
The promotion of a pride sticker and the likelihood that a flag will go up in June at all schools suggests a particular political agenda, which warrants examination. Concern about alleged incidents of bullying directed at the LGBTQ community within schools has been raised. However when requesting specific information on the actual number of such reports, it was communicated that the data is currently confidential and not publicly available. Despite clarifying that only the number of incidents was desired, the same response was given.
The lack of transparency and information provided by the York Region Catholic District School Board concerning alleged incidents combined with these extreme campaigns using safe space stickers to promote political agendas, raises necessary questions about their motives. Despite facing opposition from relevant individuals, including the Archbishop of Toronto and Cardinal Collins, who have both explicitly expressed their disapproval of such displays, the union and its members have vehemently insisted the stickers remain.
We must stand up against this before the Board caves to the pressure of political correctness and decide to raise the pride flag too.
Please share this. We must get as many signatures as possible before May 20th so that we may present a united front at this months meeting with this petition in hand that will speak for itself and will represent all of us.
Thank you.
Sheree D
The young girl was traumatized by the incident. From Jessica, the Grade 8 student:
I was surprised when I heard there was going to be a school-wide ceremony for the raising of the pride flag. I thought for sure that they’d at least be a bit flexible with attendance for those who didn’t want to go because of religious concerns or other concerns. I was wrong.
I asked the teacher who was supervising my class at the time if we HAD to go and she said it was ‘mandatory.’ She didn’t even allow me to explain my reasoning about why I didn’t want to go.
We were brought down to the assembly at the front of the school as a class. I was feeling uneasy as I wasn’t sure what the assembly would involve or what I might be asked to do.
I also didn’t like that being there made me feel like I was supporting something that violates my faith.
There were a couple of speakers before the raising of the flag. When the time came for the pride flag to be raised, we were told to stand for this.
I panicked a little bit. I knew that standing meant that I was supporting this, or at least, hiding from what I really believe.
But sitting meant that I would be singled out. I was afraid that people would think I was a homophobe.
Although I don’t celebrate homosexuality, I wouldn’t by any means treat someone who is a homosexual differently. People can live their lives however they want.
But I couldn’t explain this to everyone at my school, so there were bound to be people who would think negatively about me for not standing.
As well as this, one of my close friends was the main speaker at this part of the assembly and a main member of the LGBTQ+ club at our school. I was afraid that her opinion of me would be changed and that she may feel personally insulted that I wouldn’t stand during her part of the assembly.
I decided that it wasn’t worth violating my faith for people’s opinions of me. I didn’t stand. But everyone else did. Some of my friends were like, ‘What are you doing?’
It was hard.
At the end of the assembly, the school played a song that had openly disrespectful lyrics insulting the Bible and Christianity. It was scary.
I hope I am never in another situation like that again.
At just 14 years of age, she’s an inspiration. But, can you believe that this young girl was made to be a spectacle by her school in the first place? Made to choose between her faith and potentially being bullied?
How can anyone deny that this was ideological indoctrination by the school, behind parents’ backs? And it’ll happen all over the country in a great number of schools tomorrow.
We have to stop this intimidation of Christian and other faith-based students in its tracks.
Let’s ensure no more students are placed in frightening and humiliating situations like 14-year-old Jessica had to suffer.
For life & family,
Jeff Gunnarson
National President
Campaign Life Coalition
P.S. CLC’s Jack Fonseca was interviewed yesterday on Liberty Coalition Canada’s podcast about our Walk-Out campaign. You can watch it starting at the 42 minute mark, here, although the whole podcast is worth watching.
P.P.S. Don’t forget to register to tell us you’ll participate in the Pray-In or National Pride Flag Walk-Out Day events by clicking here.
Published with permission from Campaign Life Coalition.