Brown had ample reason to be concerned about how tolerant the school system is of certain students: Three months ago, the same board set a policy on political conversation in the classroom that could penalize teachers who dare voice views that are not “aligned with the approved curriculum.” The flags were given to county schools by Stephanie Brown, the parent of a 13-year-old reportedly bullied for her LGBTQ advocacy, and the Westminster chapter of the nonprofit Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays.
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To his credit, Steven Lockard, the school system’s superintendent, defended the recently donated flags to the board. Last week, Carroll County’s school board voted to adopt a new policy regarding political symbols in school buildings in reaction to complaints by parents regarding the presence of the rainbow flag. One small way that can be done is to display a rainbow flag, a symbol of pride in the gay community that has been around since the mid-1980s.Īnd then there is the Carroll County Public Schools Board of Education. Under these circumstances, one would assume that parents, friends, relatives, neighbors, school personnel and anyone else who has regular contact with LGBTQ youth would be scrambling to find opportunities to comfort, to accept, to be inclusive and affirming. But the survey of 35,000 lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning individuals between the ages of 13 and 24 by The Trevor Project, a nonprofit focused on LGBTQ youth suicide prevention, points to other factors as well: 94% of those surveyed said recent politics had worsened their outlook and 75% said they had suffered some form of gender discrimination. The COVID-19 pandemic, which has increased teen suicides attempts overall, likely played a role in that. One of the most prominent gay members of President Donald Trump's administration is Richard Grenell, the US ambassador to Germany.Ī former commentator on Fox News, Grenell said he enjoyed the support of Trump and Vice President Mike Pence, another evangelical, for a US-led campaign to end persecution of gay people - an initiative that notably criticizes US arch-rival Iran.Last year, a nationwide mental health survey found that a stunning 42% of LGBTQ youth considered suicide in the past year. The US embassy in New Delhi was lit up in the rainbow colors as a sign of solidarity in a country where the Supreme Court last year overturned a colonial-era ban on gay sex. I am demanding the Trump admin explain this hate," he tweeted.Ĭhad Griffin, head of the Human Rights Campaign, the lead US gay rights group, said that the flag order "sends a chilling message not only to LGBTQ people in this country, but around the globe."Ī number of US embassies have already highlighted their celebrations of Pride Month. "As we celebrate Pride Month, this decision must be reversed. "At a time when LGBTQ+ communities around the world face persecution, this Trump decision is a blatant attack on LGBTI rights," said Senator Ed Markey, a Democrat from Massachusetts.
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News of Pompeo's orders, first reported last week by NBC News, provoked outrage among advocates of gay rights. The previous administration of president Barack Obama, an advocate of gay rights equality, let US embassies fly the pride flag without no questions asked and even lit up the White House in the rainbow colors when the Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage nationwide in 2015. "Pride month, that we're in right now, was celebrated around the world by many State Department employees," she said.
DONALD TRUMP GAY PRIDE FLAG FREE
"The secretary has the position that, as it relates to the flagpole, that only the American flag should be flown there," State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus told reporters.īut she said that US diplomats overseas were free to display rainbows flags elsewhere at embassies in June - Pride Month, with this year marking the 50th anniversary of New York's Stonewall uprising that sparked the modern gay rights movement. Pompeo, an evangelical Christian, has said that he defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman but has also said he respects employees regardless of sexual orientation. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has barred US embassies from flying the rainbow flag of the gay pride movement on flagpoles, the State Department confirmed Monday after criticism.