Halton Ontario Catholic District School Board Rescinds Equity And Inclusiveness Policy That Prohibited Gay-Straight Alliances

The Halton Ontario Catholic District School Board trustees have voted to rescind a policy that prohibited gay-straight alliances in their schools, the Hamilton Spectator reporting that trustees voted 8-2 to remove a policy passed by outgoing board last year that the current board Tuesday called “too restrictive and narrow in focus.” The board, under attack by gay rights advocacy groups and by the community also voted to put in place as an interim measure the Ontario Education Services Corporations Catholic template policy, developed in 2010 in conjunction with Catholic community partners throughout the province to aid Catholic school boards in defining their commitment and vision to the Ministry of Education’s equity and inclusive education strategy. The interim move was approved 8-0. The majority of trustees believe the board policy did not cultivate an inclusive, supportive climate for students, and a new policy will be created, the first meeting for the policy committee scheduled for February 8th. Arlene Iantomasi, one of the trustees who voted in favour of rescinding the old policy, said “Students must be able to attend our school without fear. This current policy is an insult.” The two trustees who voted against rescinding the policy offered a different perspective, trustee Anthony Danko saying that allowing gay-straight alliances in Catholic schools removed religion from “resolving this problem,” and trustee Jane Michael, a new member of the board, said “If we abandon our Catholic principles, we will have abandoned our link to home and church,” because, she said, Catholic doctrine “takes exception to the homosexual lifestyle.” Ahead of the vote, the trustees heard from a group of young people urging the board to retract the policy, including James Hopkins, an openly gay former student in the Halton Catholic school system, who said “My high school years were mostly positive ... but that doesn’t mean I didn’t suffer from my peers. Day in, day out I suffered.” He added that the gay-straight alliances promote acceptance and understanding and offer a safe space for gay students. “There’s not time more important to be accepted than in your formative years,” Hopkins said. “The only requirement of this group is to show up with an open mind and an open heart.”