‘Can’t take away our pride:’ Students against potential WCDSB Pride flag ban

The Waterloo Catholic District School Board (WCDSB) is continuing to mull over its upcoming motion that could ban Pride flags across its schools.

It’s been met with pushback since the news broke of the potential ban, with hundreds flocking to the board’s education office ahead of the initial Monday meeting.

The final decision is not expected to be given until later next month, being pushed back to April 29. Now, it’s given students a clear timeline to try and have their voices heard.

“I’m actually kind of surprised that they are doing this as they passed a rule that they were able to fly the Pride flag in 2018,” David Leepoy-Brown, a Grade 10 student at St. David Catholic Secondary School in Waterloo, said. “I’m amazed that they’re trying to ban them now after only a couple of years of spending them flying.”

Leepoy-Brown mentioned that the removal of Pride flags could have lingering mental implications for many students throughout the region. He said it’s a clear sign that safety may no longer be the number one concern.

The flag ban includes Pride flags but also stretches out to include all political flags ranging from ‘Black Lives Matter’ to ‘Make America Great Again.’ The school board has said, however, that all of its religious symbols will be completely exempt from the ban.

“It’s like a way of saying ‘You belong here, you have meaning in this area, and you’re going to be in a safe place.’ If they take them down, it’s gonna be a lot different. You might feel that they’re gonna be not as safe as they would if the Pride flag was flying.”

Grade 11 student at St. David C.S.S., Hope Chadwick, said it’s an issue that she sees right in their school, but further outreach needs to be made to ensure a clear message is getting across.

“We’re currently reaching out to other students across the board to see if we can get this brought wider than just our school.”

She said a few steps are being taken by those students who have been impacted, including conversations with other students and even handing out stickers at the school.

“We’ve been asking people, if they choose, to take one to wear it on their uniform to show their support. We’ve also asked people, they don’t have to, cover the (St. David) Celtics logo.”

It also comes as Chair of the school board, Robert Sikora stepped down and turned in his resignation effective immediately. The catholic school board has given no reason as to why Sikora resigned.

570 NewsRadio has reached out to WCDSB for comment on the motion, but no statements have been provided after multiple attempts to reach out.

If the ban goes into effect, the school board has said it will only fly its own flag, along with the Ontario and Canadian flags, saying that it’s a clear enough distinction of the diversity of its students. Although, Leepoy-Brown stated it’s not a mindset shared by its students.

“Having them take down the flags just doesn’t make it feel like a place for all of us.”