Ontario students given `I Enjoy Being a Dyke' T-shirts

Prizes at Day of Pink Conference

• A 12-year-old student in Ontario was given a T-shirt with the caption, “I Enjoy Being a Dyke,” during a school-approved field trip in the Muskoka region.

The clothing was distributed at a Day of Pink Conference hosted at a school in the Trillium Lakelands District School Board on April 2. The board clarified that nearly two dozen shirts were handed out as “prizes during the event,” though it “was not approved by the event co-ordinators in advance.”

The conference brought together students from several gay-straight alliances, including elementary students, and featured a talk by two members of the so-called “Brunswick Four,” a group of lesbians evicted from a Toronto bar in 1974 for singing a parody song. The women were eventually arrested, and three were indicted on counts of obstruction of justice. One eventually served a 30-day sentence for contempt of court. A subsequent public inquiry found some law-enforcement officers used “abusive language in addressing the women,” but qualified that it was a response to offensive behaviour on the part of the women.

The parental consent forms distributed by Muskoka Beechgrove Public School in Gravenhurst, Ont., prior to the event, described the meeting as a “leadership conference.” However, after the event, one principal sent a message to parents disclosing children had received the controversial T-shirt.

“In their presentation, they (the speakers) gave away T-shirts that represent their message and purpose which references the word `dyke' and the history behind the Brunswick Four,” the principal wrote. “We thought it was important that you were aware that your child may come home with a T-shirt. Please take the opportunity to have a conversation with them.”

Amanda Hunter, whose 12-year-old received the T-shirt, rebuked the principal, saying that the message was a desperate attempt to do damage control.

“That permission form for the leadership conference was a LIE. And then the email you sent out was ridiculous,” Hunter wrote in an email to the administrator. “You started off by saying, `As you are aware...' (but) how were parents aware when the form said leadership conference with NO OTHER DETAILS?”

Hunter illustrated her point by sharing other informed consent forms distributed by the school on similar occasions for her daughter, who's in Grade 7.

Whereas the Day of Pink Conference only included the title, these extracurricular events — curling and skating — provided detailed breakdowns of the day's events, host, times and cost. The skating trip even offered parents an exhaustive breakdown of five different options for where a parent could drop off their child, if they were bringing their own skates or renting, and if the child needed help lacing their skates.

“We regret that the permission form for this event lacked more detail and we are taking steps to follow up with schools to ensure all excursions are planned with full transparency in mind,” Carolynne Bull, a spokeswoman for the school board, wrote in an email to National Post. “(The school board) recognizes the pivotal role parents/guardians and communities play in working and learning together for the educational success of all students.”

The school did not respond to National Post's request for comment.

Hunter felt such shirts could physically endanger students because many people might find the term offensive and not understand its framing in this context.

“Handing a shirt out with a derogatory term like `dyke' is actually so dangerous,” she said. “What if one of the students wore that shirt and got their ass kicked because it's basically a slur?”

Asked about this, Bull wrote, “student safety is of utmost importance and staff are trained to support a school culture and climate that is safe, conducive to learning and free from discrimination.”

When Hunter contacted the principal, the receipt of her message was confirmed, but did not explain if any steps were forthcoming. “I appreciate that you have brought this to my attention. I am aware of the situation and the communication and T-shirt concerns have been brought to the attention of the superintendent of equity and inclusion.”