Students Protest After Texas High School Removes LGBTQ+ Safe Space Stickers

Published September 24, 2021

At some point (usually around puberty but not always), we will come to better understand who we are as people and who we're the most attracted to.

And when youths come to realize that they're part of the LGBTQ+ community, it can be a stressful time no matter where they find themselves. After all, it's often pretty hard to gauge how those in our lives will react when we come to them with news like this.

Furthermore, no matter how many cultural strides we see towards LGBTQ+ acceptance, it seems there will always be some people hell-bent on harming those who don't line up with the way they see the world.

For both of these reasons, a simple "safe space" sticker can be a helpful marker for LGBTQ+ individuals. In schools in other public institutions, they can assure potentially vulnerable people that they've found someone who's more likely to understand and support them.

However, one story from Texas shows that the schools themselves don't always see the value in these signs.

At the end of August, LGBTQ+ safe space stickers that look like this were removed from the walls of MacArthur High School in Irving, Texas.

Wikimedia Commons | Bridger987

According to People, the school administration's stated rationale for this decision was that it's already a safe space for all students and that stickers like these constitute using the classroom "to transmit personal beliefs regarding political or sectarian issue."

In response, a teacher and sponsor of the school's Gay-Straight Alliance Club named Rachel Stonecipher said, "They are merely a signal that a teacher feels confident in their ability to have these conversations. That's it."

In addition to feeling that the school is misunderstanding the purpose of these stickers, some students and teachers have also contested the administration's claims that they've made the school safe and equitable.

Twitter | @CBS11Andrea

As a sophomore named Alyssa Harbin mentioned at a school meeting, the basis by which students are "randomly" questioned by school officials aroused this suspicion.

In their words, "All of these randomly selected people have been to at least one Gay Straight Alliance meeting making it feel extremely targeted."

For her part, Stonecipher confirmed this common feeling, saying, "There's a lot of hurt, confusion and fear from students who feel like the administration has a problem with them for being LGBTQ+."

Twitter | @CBS11Andrea

She went on to say, "I was a little scared too because I'm the only openly, very obviously gay teacher, lesbian teacher."

And now, students have seen even more reason to suspect she was right to be nervous since both she and another teacher with the surname Shah — who also sponsored the Gay Straight Alliance Club — have been removed from their classes and escorted from the school.

A supporter of the club alleges that they've been placed on administrative leave.

These measures have prompted a walkout from students on September 23 that particularly contested the removal of these two teachers.

As People reported, Stonecipher has said that students don't need to be concerned about her.

Nonetheless, the school has not issued a statement regarding the reason for removing these teachers, nor are they clear about their current employment status.

h/t: People

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