Catholic school students rally for LGBTQ community after gay pride t-shirt incident

Gay Pride Shirts WikiCommons/ Stefano Bolognini

St. Francis of Assisi School students holds protests after Father John J. “Jack” Lombardi instructed the teacher of a seventh-grader to let the student remove her gay pride shirt in front of other students.

Karmen Collin, school principal, says the student’s shirt violates the school’s dress code and Catholic teaching.

Students Organize Protest

Students think that the removal of the girl’s t-shirt is a poor excuse for the action. Dylan Hoffman, a fellow student, expressed her anger about the incident at a mass Friday morning.

As a form of protest, students and their families showed up in church in rainbow-striped fashion. Everyone had pride covid masks on. Some wore a white shirt with a rainbow-colored print saying: “I am a child of God.”

This is an expression of support to the student with an LGBTQ mother who was the issue.

Many students think that the priest’s reprimand was like asking the student to remove a part of her family since her parents are part of the queer community. The way they made the girl remove her shirt was embarrassing.

The twelve-year-old who wore the rainbow-striped jersey on a “Dress Down Day”  in school was left confused after the incident. Her shirt says: “Proud 365,” which means support and respect to the LGBTQ community throughout the year, not only during Pride season.

Archdiocese Responds to Protest

Lombardi refused to give his statement regarding the incident. The priest showed no signs to address the issue of LGBTQ. 

However, two church officiants showed subtle acknowledgment of the community by wearing pride masks.

During the congregation’s Confirmation class introduction, Lauren Voos mentioned statements like “All are welcome” and “My heart is full of pride.”

On the other hand, Beatrice Messaris also went off-script during the call-and-response portion of the service: “For marginalized orientations and gender identities…” she added at the end of the intercessions. The congregation answered with a louder voice: “Lord, hear our prayer.”

Christian Kendzierski, Executive Director of Communications for the Archdiocese, explained the controversial incident with the student’s gay pride shirt.

“The attire contained imagery and language with a message that could be determined to oppose teachings of the Catholic Church. St. Francis of Assisi is a Catholic parish and school that upholds the tenets and teachings of the Catholic faith,” Kendzierski said.

Kendzierski argued that the removal of the pride t-shirt was initiated by the school administration, not by Lombardi.

The archdiocese advocates respect, compassion, and sensitivity for every person. He also stated that the archdiocese understands the concerns regarding the incident and is planning to discuss the matter with the people concerned.

Church Matters Under Lombardi’s Office

The church started around 1927, and the school dates back to 1957. According to one of the protest supporters, the church has always been diverse and full of different people.

The parish is dedicated to Catholic social teachings and social justice that helps in dealing with larger communities. St. Francis of Assisi Church website says: “All are welcome here, and that’s a mantra we live by! There is a home for everyone here at SFA”.

However, many of the protesters said that the atmosphere at the church has changed since Lombardi stepped in. It has become hostile and unsafe for most parishioners.

Lauren Voos, a queer woman who has been a youth coordinator for the church for three years, felt endangered due to the recent incident. She and her mother, who is also a longtime coordinator of the church, resigned from their posts at the church. But, they did not disclose any information regarding their decision.

As for the mother of the controversial student, there is still no response to her complaint to the Archdiocese’s Superintendent of Catholic Schools.

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