A protest against Three Rivers Community Schools' recent Pride flag ban is scheduled for 4 p.m. today, Monday, December 6 in the south parking lot of Three Rivers High School. "100 Allies for Acceptance," organized by Andrew George and Riley Mains, will take place during the two hours before Monday night's Three Rivers school board meeting, which begins at 6 p.m.
Former Three Rivers Middle School teacher Russell Ball joins Keep Your Voice Down to talk about his recent resignation after Three Rivers Community Schools staff were asked to remove Pride flags from their classrooms due to an "external challenge." Ball details the events leading up to his exit, what the flag represents to members of the LGBTQIA+ community, and why the flags should remain in classrooms not only in Three Rivers but around the world.
The event focused on disparities in health care, homelessness and the availability of jobs for LGBTQ people.
Fair and Equal Michigan, the group aiming to amend the state’s Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act to expand anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ+ residents, filed an appeal with the Michigan Supreme Court Wednesday after the Board of State Canvassers last week rejected the group’s petition.
LGBTQ+ representation in elected offices has taken big strides in the last year nationwide, especially on the local level in Michigan, according to a recent study.
The bipartisan Board of State Canvassers unanimously voted Monday to reject the Fair and Equal Michigan petition to amend the state’s Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act to expand anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ+ residents due to a lack of valid signatures. The group was aiming to get the issue before voters in 2022.
Fair and Equal Michigan, the group behind the ballot drive to prohibit discrimination against LGBTQ people, is prepared to file a lawsuit against the Michigan Bureau of Elections (BOE) after determining the petition failed to clear a hurdle to get on the 2022 ballot.
A new local progressive organization called Community Equality Resources (C.E.R.) finished second in Colon's Fourth of July parade this weekend, a feat they say is a major step in the process of "breaking down barriers" within the village and township for "members of the LGBTQIA+ community, and by extension all diverse groups of peoples within the village."
WSV’s Lisha McCurry writes, “As a therapist, I wept for every client in the LGBTQIA+ community I’ve worked with who sat across from me in pain, in shame, experiencing self-doubt or internalized homophobia. Clients who I managed to bond with over superheroes and general nerd-dom, underdog stories and the fantasy worlds they escaped into when our real world was too much. I imagined them in that moment, seeing themselves on that screen, thinking ‘Loki’s like me? That’s so amazing.’”
After a student-led Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) club at Whitehall High School sent out an email to the student body that included resources about sexuality and identity during Pride week, that kickstarted an often-heated conversation in the small West Michigan community about where the line is between schools and families in talking about LGBTQ issues.
A NOTE FROM OUR EDITOR
Become a monthly donor today
A monthly donation of $5 or more can make a difference.
