Hundreds showed up to a Waterloo Catholic District School Board (WCDSB) meeting as a display of concern for a motion that could ban Pride flags at all schools in the district.
The motion, discussed in a public WCDSB meeting on Monday Mar. 24, 2025, argued to prohibit the use of all flags and symbols including Pride, Black Lives Matter, Every Child Matters and more.
The Queer Youth Defence responded by organizing a gathering at the board meeting. While only 150 individuals got into the meeting due to capacity, hundreds of others showed support outside.
“These things are not political statements. They’re statements of support to people with diverse experiences,” Acer Bonaparte, organizer with Queer Youth Defence, said.
The motion, which was introduced by Conrad Stanley, WCDSB trustee, would only allow the Canadian, Ontarian or school board flags to be seen inside or outside of schools if passed—all flags that, according to the motion, represent everyone.
“It is essentially a dog whistle to minority groups that they need to feel represented by the Canadian flag…that their own heritage and culture doesn’t matter,” Bonaparte said.
“It’s an absolute way of othering everybody that does not feel represented by a flag that has represented so much harm, genocide and exclusion over the years,” they said.
“Our intention and goal was to show queer kids that there’s a space to belong,” Bonaparte said. “I think it was just a beautiful show of solidarity.”
At the same time, local advocates and politicians took to social media, sharing open letters to trustees and the minister of education.
Aislinn Clancy, Green Party MPP for Kitchener-Centre, who grew up as a student in the WCDSB said she was there when the board raised the pride flag for the very first time in 2021.
“We have staff, we have students that identify and so it was a significant, momentous occasion…that was a hard-fought victory,” Clancy said. “This school board’s democracy has been eroded.”
Many local advocates speaking out, including organizations such as Spectrum and OK2BME, have indicated concern on the impact for queer youth, should the motion pass.
“I’m worried that by taking down the pride flag and empowering hateful voices, that this will make school less safe and then those kids don’t have the same opportunities for education and learning that other kids have,” Clancy said.
At the same time, Bonaparte said these notions of anti-diversity, equity and inclusion could be linked to events occurring across the border.
“We know that last time Trump was elected, hate crimes exploded, because once you start to give voice and power to these narratives, other people in the community feel that they can act out in hateful ways,” Clancy said.
As well, Clancy noted concern around bucketing various symbols and flags together. A decision she says erases the history and meaning of symbols.
“They’re equating the Confederate flag with the Pride flag, and White Lives Matter and Black Lives Matter flags under the same umbrella,” Clancy said
“It shows a real lack of understanding from the groups that created this initiative…some of them are really hateful symbols meant to keep people down and other symbols are of love to lift people up…they should not be in the same category,” Clancy said.
The motion will be voted on during the next public WCDSB meeting place in Apr. 28.
Until then, local advocates are encouraging folks to reach out to trustees ahead to share their thoughts on the motion.
“Definitely message the trustees, but also reach out to your friends and build some movement of care and get some mutual aid going because that is how we sustain this long term and that is how we survive, it is how we have always survived,” Bonaparte said.
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