Massachusetts middle school students tear down rainbow decorations and chant their pronouns are 'U.S.A.' during Pride celebration: Officials slam 'intolerance and homophobia'

Massachusetts middle schoolers tore down Pride decorations and chanted that their pronouns were 'USA' in a striking protest after they were asked to wear rainbow colors to school.

Students at Marshall Simonds Middle School in Burlington, Massachusetts, were asked to wear rainbow-colored shirts to celebrate Pride Month on June 2, but a preplanned protest broke out with students tearing up Pride flag stickers and chanting: 'USA are my pronouns.'

Decked out in red, white and blue, the students destroyed the decorations lining the hallway the student organization Spectrum Group distributed, including a quote from American playwright Tennessee Williams, signage saying the school was a 'safe space' and 'equality for everyone' decorations.

'I was shocked and horrified,' Nila Almstrom, a parent of an LGBT student, said at a town hall meeting about the protest.

Parents have told local news outlets their straight-identifying students said they felt forced to participate and were 'offended' by the Tennessee Williams quote that reiterated that the human heart is 'curved like a road through the mountains' and only lines and streets can be straight.

[...]
The altercation sparked allies and parents to call for more diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in the school, claiming that 'this type of intolerant rhetoric starts in the home.'

'These displays of intolerance and homophobia are unacceptable and impact the whole community,' Burlington Equity Coalition Co-Chair, Nancy Bonassera, said during the meeting on Monday night. 'We challenge Burlington town leadership to take an active stand against hate under the guise of "free expression."'

[...]

Days after the disastrous Pride celebration, anti-Semitic and racist graffiti was found inside the schools bathroom. However, Perchase told parents she does not believe it was related to the Pride outburst, the Boston Globe reported.

Parents are now calling for the DEI board to be reinstated. It dissolved in 2022 after its one-year scheduled tenure was up.

[...]