It’s officially Pride Month, but all eyes are seemingly still on the York Catholic District School Board after voting against flying the Pride flag in front of its education centre in June.
School trustees voted 6-4 against flying the flag during a meeting held Monday.
Since then, residents and even politicians have spoken out and called the decision “shameful.”
Now, another conversation has sparked online regarding whether or not the province should defund the Catholic school system in Ontario.
“It’s ridiculous for tax dollars to fund one religion’s school system. Either all religions should get equal treatment or we should only fund a secular public system,” one Twitter user said.
Another user agreed, claiming it’s “indefensible” to dish out money to Catholic schools in a secular society.
Many argued that taxpayers were “bleeding out money” for Catholic schools despite Catholic churches being “obscenely wealthy.”
In fact, the Toronto Star reports that merging the Ontario public and Catholic school systems could save taxpayers more than $1.5 billion every year.
“Putting religion aside, the opportunity to repurpose $1.5 billion to other priorities (e.g. healthcare) should be enough to put an end to wasting money on running parallel systems,” one Twitter user noted.
However, others did not agree with cutting off the school system for standing up for their beliefs regarding the Pride flag.
“So, the catholic school needs to be defunded for expressing traditional catholic views?” one user asked.
“This is the blackmail they use to force compliance. It’s wrong,” another argued.
Meanwhile, the Toronto Catholic District School Board has not only raised the Pride flag but is also actively supporting the 2SLGBTQ+ community by holding events on school grounds in celebration of the month ahead.
Based on its Twitter account alone, over 15 schools raised the colourful flag as of Thursday afternoon.
Celebrating and recognizing the importance of #Love, #Diversity & #Inclusion at St. Denis Catholic School with @KennedyTCDSB and @Kathleen_Wynne. #Pride2023 pic.twitter.com/CqurVzfPwo
— Toronto Catholic District School Board (@TCDSB) May 31, 2023
Raising the Pride flag at @MgrFraser_TCDSB Midland 🌈
— Jenn Catanzaro (@teachinginTO) June 1, 2023
As @TCDSB tweeted today to kick off #PrideMonth, "the #TCDSB stands proudly in solidarity with members from the #2SLGBTQ+ communities as we highlight the importance of love, inclusion, compassion, and care for all!" pic.twitter.com/5tgnqRLtRB
Kicking off #PrideMonth2023 pic.twitter.com/R3WRcBV0dP
— Dante Alighieri Academy (@DanteAcademy) June 1, 2023
This morning @LAT_TCDSB we launched Pride Month by raising the Pride flag 🏳️🌈 as a visible sign of our commitment to 2SLGBTQ+ students, staff & families. As Jesus was, and as we are called to be, we are welcoming communities of everyone. @LAT_vp @MsAdamsL @TCDSB @Equity_TCDSB pic.twitter.com/e9idTNydXO
— Loretto Abbey CSS (@LAT_TCDSB) June 1, 2023
