For the month of June, all OCDSB schools and buildings will be flying the Pride Flag and celebrating Pride Month. Pride Month in the OCDSB is an opportunity to celebrate diversity, learn about the achievements and histories of 2SLGBTQ+ individuals, acknowledge the many challenges 2SLGBTQ+ communities continue to face, and to reaffirm our support for all identities as we stand together against discrimination.
Below you will find information, and some frequently asked questions to help guide your conversations.
Why is OCDSB flying the Pride flag?
By flying the OCDSB Pride Flag, the OCDSB is reaffirming its values and commitment to creating and sustaining a learning and working environment where 2SLGBTQ+ students, families and staff matter and are welcome, seen and represented at the OCDSB. The OCDSB recognizes, however, that reaffirming our values and committing to providing equitable, inclusive and accessible environments does not end with simply flying the OCDSB Pride Progress flag.
What is the Pride flag and why is it important?
Flags are a powerful symbol of pride for many communities and countries as a symbol of unity, pride, and solidarity. The Pride Flag was designed to be a symbol of pride for the 2SLGBTQ+ community. The colours of the flag reflect the diversity of the community, with the different colours having different meanings. Flying the Pride Flag signals that our schools are safer spaces for members of the 2SLGBTQ+ community and this aligns with the OCDSB’s Strategic Plan of equity, inclusion, and accessibility.
Why is it important to have a Pride Month?
The OCDSB chooses to mark many months of significance including Asian and South Asian Heritage Month, Islamic Heritage Month, Indigenous History Month, Jewish Heritage Month, Black History Month and Pride Month to name a few. This is to ensure that schools are welcoming and safe places for students of all identities to feel seen, valued and respected in their school. Pride Month is marked as a celebration, an assertion of human rights, and an opportunity to bring attention to the discrimination and violence still experienced by members of the 2SLGBTQ+ community here in Canada and around the world.
Why does Pride Month happen in June?
Pride Month is celebrated in June to honour the Stonewall riots in New York which happened in June of 1969. These uprisings were a pivotal moment in the fight for 2SLGBTQ+ rights and recognition. We honour the bravery and resilience of those who fought against discrimination and oppression, in the month of June, as we continue to advocate for the 2SLGBTQ+ community. Cities and towns throughout Ontario organize their own celebrations and reflections which often include raising the rainbow flag, parades and marches and a full schedule of kid-friendly programs. The City of Ottawa hosts Pride Week in August which includes the Capital Pride Parade.
Why does it have to be a whole month?
The OCDSB chooses to mark many months of significance including Sikh Heritage Month, Asian Heritage Month, Indigenous History Month, Black History Month and Pride Month. These months of significance are important reminders to honour diversity and learn more about history and the diversity that exists in schools in the OCDSB. While the month provides a special opportunity to learn and celebrate, schools across the District are encouraged to engage in learning that reflects the experiences and perspectives of 2SLGBTQ+ communities all year round.
Do all schools in the OCDSB participate in Pride Month?
Schools are encouraged to participate in marking Pride Month, however, activities will differ from school to school. All schools will fly the OCDSB Pride flag during the month of June.
What kind of activities happen during Pride Month?
Many schools will have activities during nutrition breaks that are welcoming of everyone. This is in addition to classroom learning, where educators engage in learning that reflects the experiences and perspectives of 2SLGBTQ+ communities.
Schools throughout the OCDSB mark Pride Month differently. This might include creating artwork and posters; organizing walks, picnics, workshops, and other celebrations; raising funds for community organizations; providing library displays with books representing 2SLGBTQ+ stories and identities; making buttons and t-shirts; and much more. Some schools will have workshops with guest speakers.
Do students have to attend all the activities for Pride Month?
Students can opt in or out of activities that happen at lunch/nutrition breaks or before and after school. Schools will not offer the option of opting out of learning and activities that take place during instructional time in the month of June.
The law requires public schools to have an inclusive curriculum that reflects 2SLGBTQ+ identities at all grade levels in age-appropriate ways. According to the Ontario Human Rights Code, it is our professional and legal obligation to welcome, include, and support all identities at OCDSB.
What is being taught in classrooms during Pride Month?
The OCDSB encourages engagement in age-appropriate learning that reflects the experiences and perspectives of 2SLGBTQ+ communities year-round and not just during Pride Month. Throughout the school year, teachers have a professional and legal obligation by the Province of Ontario,
- to give students a variety of opportunities to learn about diversity and diverse perspectives
- to provide an inclusive and welcoming environment for 2SLGBTQ+ students and families by embedding resources that reflect and respect 2SLGBTQ+ identities. Any erasure from the curriculum is a form of discrimination.
- to enable students to see themselves in the curriculum and as such to use learning activities and materials that reflect the diversity of Ontario.
Considerations for Program Planning: Human Rights, Equity, and Inclusive Education
As with all designated celebratory months, the goal is to help educators amplify learning about diverse identities and experiences every month of the school year.
By recognizing the struggles with and learning about the history, identities, and successes within the 2SLGBTQ+ community, we promote understanding, acceptance, and support of 2SLGBTQ+ individuals in our schools. This is essential learning to be able to build safer learning conditions for students to bring their full identities to school.
Why can’t my child stay home for the month of June?
Your child is an important member of our school community. Keeping your child at home will cause them to be marked absent, and may jeopardize their learning in all subject areas. Policies and procedures related to increased and sustained absences will be followed as usual. Please remember that the month of June will find teachers teaching as they would throughout the school year, using methods that are respectful and inclusive of all members of the school community.
Just as students are not expected to opt out of other identity months such as Asian Heritage Month, Islamic Heritage Month, Black History Month, or Indigenous Heritage Month, the expectation is the same for Pride Month. Schools will not offer the choice of opting out during the school day in the month of June.
Pride Month runs for the whole month of June. Many activities for Pride Month will happen during the nutrition/lunch breaks and are optional. Regular classes take place as usual, unless there are guest speakers or assemblies. Educators are encouraged to include learning about diverse identities including the 2SLGBTQ+ community throughout the school year.
Please note that engagement with Pride Month is not equivalent to the Human Development and Sexual Health expectations found in the Ontario Curriculum: Health and Physical Education, where parents may choose to opt their children out of studying that strand.
Why are parental consent forms not provided?
No exemptions are permitted for material that would permit a student not to learn about human rights (ex. gender identity). According to the Ontario Human Rights Code, it is our professional and legal obligation to welcome, include, and support all identities at OCDSB.
By ‘opting out’ or being accommodated to avoid learning about 2SLGBTQ+ this violates our responsibility and obligation to represent and respect diversity in our learning. 2SLGBTQ+ identities are included, respected and welcome in our learning activities and resources.
What if my family’s religious beliefs are not aligned with the marking/celebrating of June as Pride Month?
Many in our school community have different religious belief systems. The OCDSB marks Pride Month to honour, affirm, and value the identities of the students, staff, and families in the 2SLGBTQ+ community. The OCDSB is committed to human rights, equity and inclusion. “As a school district, we acknowledge that oppression and discrimination still exist within our systems, structures, policies and practices. It shows up specifically as racism and more specifically anti-Indigenous and anti-Black racism; Islamophobia, antisemitism, and antiSikhism; ableism; sexism, transphobia and homophobia. “ Indigenous, Equity and Human Rights Roadmap - 2020-2023
One of the ways we combat this discrimination is to make sure that all grades include age-appropriate learning about, and recognizing excellence, in the different marginalized communities. We find spaces in our curriculum to recognize excellence in our Black, Muslim, Indigenous, Jewish and 2SLGTBQ+ (among others) communities and share that in our learning spaces. It is extremely important that students can see themselves and their peers in their learning community.
The OCDSB aligns itself with the statement from Minister of Education Stephen Lecce who states: “It is incumbent on all school boards to ensure all students – most especially 2SLGBTQ+ students – feel supported, reflected in their schools, and welcomed within our communities. That includes celebrating Pride in a constructive, positive and meaningful ways to affirm that 2SLGBTQ+ students know that their educators and staff, school board administrators, and government stand with them.” June 2023
Overall Statement
Schools are a safe space to prepare students to co-exist with others whose values may differ from their own.
Gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation are protected under the Human Rights Code. An inclusive curriculum is one where all identities are reflected in the curriculum resources. These types of discussions and engagements are important from a young age and help the District to fulfill its obligation to teach respect and acceptance of all identities within our community. Diversity needs to be affirmed and we're creating an environment that is respectful and welcoming of all identities. This starts from the moment children enter the school system. The law is clear that learning about gender identity, gender expression and/or sexual orientation in school, even if the learning conflicts with a person’s values or religious beliefs, does not violate their human rights. In fact, the law requires public schools to have an inclusive curriculum that values 2SLGBTQ+ identities at all grade levels.