Burlington school officials have responded to a confrontation at a middle school where a group of students tore down rainbow decorations and chanted “My pronouns are USA” as the school’s LGBTQ student group celebrated the start of Pride month.
The incident occurred on June 2, when Marshall Simonds Middle School students, part of the “Spectrum Club,” held an event where they handed out rainbow stickers and decorated the school with Pride posters while encouraging other students and faculty to wear rainbow clothing.
But some students, who supported their beliefs by wearing red, blue, and white clothes and face paint, reportedly reacted to the event by tearing down the banners and signs while chanting, “My pronouns are USA.”
Principal Cari Purchase shared her support for the LGBTQ community, expressing being “truly sorry” they were targeted, suggesting “that a day to celebrate your identity turned into a day of intolerance.”
Superintendent Eric Conti also addressed the incident in a letter to the community, writing that he wanted “all staff, teachers, and members of the Burlington Public School community to join us in taking a stand against homophobia.”
On Tuesday (June 13), the school committee held a meeting to discuss the clash, attended by Governor Maura Healey, one of the country’s first lesbian governors, who said she was disappointed by the situation but said the school was actively working to resolve it.
Healey expressed she was especially disappointed because the incident occurred during a month when the LGBTQ community is celebrated and in a state like Massachusetts, which she said strives to ensure “members of the LGBTQ+ community, young and old, are seen, are heard, are respected and will be cared for and protected.
