Students at an Illinois high school wore “Straight Pride” shirts to school Monday, with a Bible quote that recommended punishing homosexuality with death. The kids weren’t disciplined — because the school says it was a “teachable moment.”
According to KDSK, the three St. Charles North High School students who chose to display their “Straight Pride” on Monday were neither punished nor asked to change, though near the end of the school day, they were asked to cover up the quote on the back: “If a man lay with a male as those who lay with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination and shall surely be put to DEATH.” Two kids showed up wearing the same shirt the next day, and administrators asked them to cover up with sweatshirts, which they did. But even this was too much for senior Jake Pezzuto, who said, “I don’t understand how some students are able to wear ‘Gay Pride’ shirts while we can’t wear shirts that just say ‘Straight Pride.'”
One unnamed official’s words explained that the students weren’t punished because the incident was a way to show kids that “while there are two sides to an issue, you can hold onto your side of the issue and advocate it, but you also have to be respectful of people who hold the opposite opinion.” It’s not clear how wearing a shirt that says gay people should die is “respectful” — but then, the official’s words are vague enough that you can’t quite tell who he’s even talking about. Way to sidestep the issue of how your school totally looked the other way in the face of blatant homophobia, guy.
Controversy At Illinois School Over “Straight Pride” Shirts [KDSK]
‘Straight Pride’ T-Shirts With Bible Quotation Cause Stir At St. Charles North High School [Huffington Post]