06/07/2023
The Burlington Equity Coalition is committed to building an inclusive, equitable and welcoming community that benefits from the diverse knowledge, cultures, talents and contributions of all its residents. Our vision is to live in and create a community wherein all people; regardless of race, ethnicity, sexual orientation or gender identity, religion, education, age, disability, and socio-economic status; are respected and valued.
Last Friday at Marshall Simonds Middle School, students were invited to show their pride and wear rainbow clothing in celebration of Pride Month. On that same day, there was a counter demonstration in response to what should have been a day to celebrate, where students wore red, white, and blue clothing, chanted “My pronouns are U/S/A”, and destroyed rainbow decorations at the school. These displays of intolerance and homophobia are unacceptable and impact the whole community.
The Burlington Equity Coalition stands in support of and solidarity with the members of the school community who were harmed by these acts of intolerance. We call upon the school administration to address and provide consequences for the students who participated in the counter protest. While this is an opportunity for education for the whole community and a chance to remind residents that every person is important and welcome in our town, we also believe that without any direct and concrete action, these incidents will occur again and increase in severity. In addition, we call on school administration to hire a DEI Director for the district, a position which has now been unfilled for almost a year.
We challenge Burlington town leadership to take an active stand against hate under the guise of “free expression”. We ask that the Select Board reinstate the recently disbanded Diversity, Equity and Inclusion subcommittee and set an unequivocal example for all Burlington residents that our community won’t accept acts of bigotry. The Burlington Equity Coalition is committed to keeping our leaders accountable and working with them to create a community that is inclusive and equitable to people of all backgrounds.
