Let me be very clear before I get rolling on this week's topic.
I support e-v-e-r-y-o-n-e-'s rights and freedoms to be who they truly are in this world. That's really the beauty of living in a Western society in 2023; we can be who we are, we can live the lives we choose, and we can do so knowing that most people these days will be supportive and understanding.
Change our setting to an entirely different part of the globe and things would be a whole lot worse, that's for sure.
Now then, let's go ahead and talk about transgender people and pride events.
I bet you didn't expect that sharp left turn, huh?
At some point during the last 15-20 years, the whole pride movement has really seen a major upswing both in sheer numbers and a collective understanding and acceptance from people in Canada and basically all over North America. Not only are gay and lesbian people becoming so much more accepted and treated as the normal, everyday human beings that they are (hey, just like you and I!), but people who identify as transgender are starting to see those same results.
That's awesome, in my view. I can't even begin to imagine the inner emotional turmoil that these people have suffered, and so for them to come out into the world and be accepted, that's got to be the cherry on top of the sundae.
But there's a line in our society that seems to be getting blurry these days. A line that appears to be separating the troubled people who are simply seeking acceptance and the people who are incredibly opinionated and seem to want to make Western culture, for lack of a better explanation, all about them.
How about this one:
On April 13, a 12-year-old boy in Middleborough, Massachusetts who was allegedly sent home from school for wearing a shirt that read "There are only 2 genders," confronted his local school board and defended his first amendment rights in a statement.
The boy said that on March 21 he wore the shirt when he was taken out of gym class and told his shirt was "making some students feel unsafe." The adults allegedly told him that he would need to remove his shirt before returning to class, which he refused to do. The boy said that he was told his shirt was "targeting a protected class," to which he questioned, "Who is this protected class and are their feelings more important than my rights?"
"I don't complain when I see pride flags and diversity posters hung throughout this school," he said in his statement. "Because others have a right to their beliefs just as I do."
He continued, "Not one person, staff or student, told me they were bothered with what I was wearing, in fact just the opposite, several kids told me they supported what I was doing and they wanted one too."
He said that he was told his shirt was a disruption to learning, to which he noted, "I experience disruptions to my learning every day, kids acting out in class are a disruption and nothing is done."
"Why are the rules applied to one but not another?" he asked.
This one really stands out because for one, it makes perfectly logical sense, and two, because it's coming from a 12-year old child. If kids that young are making well-said arguments such as the one he presented, doesn't it make the adults in the room look a little foolish?
Finally, we have this story:
The president of an Ontario Pride committee has filed a human rights complaint after the Township of Norwich banned Pride flags from municipal properties.
The town council in Â鶹´«Ã½AVern Ontario voted 3-2 in favour of banning all non-civic flags from municipal properties. Councillor John Scholten proposed the bylaw, arguing that civic flags best represent all members of the community, and allow everyone to “coexist in peace and harmony”.
Tami Murray, president of the Oxford County Pride committee, told media that the decision perpetuates “homophobia, discrimination and oppression,” and that she was left with no choice but to file a human rights complaint.
Okay, this one is where I put my foot down. I'm all for Pride flags flying high and proudly at city, town and village government buildings or really anywhere during the month of June, which has been earmarked as Pride Month. But the idea that such flags should be hung and displayed at those same government buildings year-round? Nope, sorry, I'm not on-board.
First off, it's a question of pure ego as far as I'm concerned. Where do you get off telling, or in some cases, outright demanding that a Pride flag be waving beside our Canadian and provincial flags all year? Do you not identify as being from Saskatchewan like all of us? Are you not Canadian like the rest of us, whether we're White, Black, Asian, First Nations, male, female, gay, lesbian, insert whatever you choose here? You HAVE to have your own special flag waving beside our iconic, all-inclusive ones? Frankly, that mindset is nothing short of childish.
Wave that flag everywhere in June, just as we do the Reconciliation flag in September. But please, don't act like it needs to be up year-round and considered to be on equal ground with the provincial flag or the Maple Leaf. It's an argument you just can't win.
In the end, it's obviously a very delicate balancing act, trying to weave out the good and the bad in our society today. Agree or disagree if you must, but sometimes, an opinion just can't be swayed. You have yours and I have mine.
That's the beauty of our Western culture, isn't it?
For this week, that's been the Ruttle Report.
