Are the rights of others respected at Doherty High School? During Playtime (School Theatre Club) after school on October 11th, 2023, the pride flag in the theatre room was torn from the wall and thrown into the trash can. We don’t know who did this, but it was sometime before the end of the school day.
We interviewed four people who attended playtime to get their take on this. We asked them 1. their initial reaction to the pride flag being torn from the wall. 2. Personal feelings about the situation? 3. Opinion on the crime itself? 4. What needs to be done to prevent this from happening again?
Whilst initial reactions varied, everyone had their own thoughts and feelings about this event. Lilly Robinson, Junior Representative of the theater cabinet stated, “I was in shock. I had already dealt with some homophobia the same exact day and that week was very difficult for me. And then that made me want to cry immediately.”
Other people who were present at the time stated that they saw it as “Pathetic,” “Childish,” and “Insulting.” All these views are valid and make sense in the case; students are clearly being put off by these events and hurt.
In addition, everyone’s personal feelings were quite different. Max Hernandez, Vice President of the theatre cabinet said, “I think it’s kind of pathetic. The fact that someone feels so strongly against a specific group of people that they feel the need to tear a flag down a wall.” The other reactions included “being mad” and “that Love is Love.” Everyone’s personal feelings matter and are very true; these students are showing that they are upset by the event that took place.
Furthermore, the opinions on the situation included very different takes and opinions. Elle Manning, a Doherty Freshman stated, “I think it was targeting a minority and absolutely shouldn’t do it ever, especially not in school.” This take is a very valid response to the crime along with the other’s responses including “It was offensive” and “sad, but I won’t let it affect me”
In response to what needs to be done, beloved theatre teacher Ryan Reed stated, “I think we need to be kind to each other.” With all the different views, there’s no one way to fix a very wide issue, so do what you think needs to be done. Students encouraged sharing out support vocally, teaching people to avoid ignorant views, and through things like pride flag pins and other displays of the rainbow flag.
With all the views of events like this, it’s hard to say there’s one way to stop it but there are simple ways to do it. Events like this are all due to ignorance and a lack of education on the subject, we need to keep people educated to avoid ideals of ignorant hatred that people do not understand. Showing support is all that can be done whether through standing up against these hateful views, wearing forms of showing pride like pins and things like that, or educating those who have these views to help them grow as a person.
