Nothing maddens a certain kind of person like seeing openly LGBTQ+ people happy. For some of the most nefarious conservatives, frankly, seeing an LGBTQ+ person out and about, even—if they’re not happy, but simply existing—can be enough to complain or worse. Sadly, but not surprisingly, we know that anti-LGBTQ+ bias is alive and well even in school settings, a place where, ideally, students should be able to express themselves and their identities safely. But we know that even LGBTQ+ youth are not immune to harassment, bullying, and abuse. 

An LGBTQ+ student pride group at a high school in Tennessee has absolutely maddened conservatives not just in the Williamson County community, but thanks to the Moms for Liberty Williamson County group, online as well. What caused so much upset? As discussed at length during a board of education meeting on Monday, some people are positively livid that a pride float was not only present during a Homecoming parade for the high school, but that two girls briefly kissed while on top of it.

Mia Elias, one of the people on the float, stressed how important it is for her to have a school community where she feels safe, explaining that she has friends who “fear for their safety” and that they’ve found the “one place we are safe,” according to local outlet WKRN.

People upset about this incident are approaching it very much from a “but the children!” angle, and are dancing around the language of simply saying, “I don’t care if you’re gay/trans/bi/etc, just keep it to yourself.” To start things off, let’s look at the tweet that has (unfortunately) gained quite a bit of traction.

LGBTQ+ folks are not sexualizing children. Celebrating LGBTQ+ identity is not sexualizing children. Being exposed to same-sex couples is not sexualizing children. Conservatives have loved to throw around that fearmongering for decades, but it simply is not true. Think about, for example, how common it is to see infants in a (gendered, by the way), onesie reading something like, “Future Heartbreaker!” or “Ladies’ man!” Or how often parents joke about two small kids (a boy and a girl, of course) who are in “love” or are going to get married when they grow up. People don’t categorize those norms as “sexualizing” youth or being inappropriate, because they’ve so deeply ingrained heteronormative life as, well, as normal.

One community member who attended Monday’s meeting described support groups as “fantastic” and “great.” Then went on to say, “Making out and French kissing on a float in front of our little children from kindergarten to sixth grade, eighth grade? Uncalled for. Passing out propaganda about bisexuality? Uncalled for.” He said school is not an “indoctrination center” and is, in his words, an “education center.”

Mind you, youth of all genders and sexuality orientations are exposed to cisgender, heterosexual relationship norms all of the time, both in the classroom and outside of it. While many folks don’t think of it in these terms, teachers, staff, parents, and community members do come “out” as being in opposite-sex relationships all of the time.

For example, having wedding or family vacation photos on a teacher’s desk, or talking about their “wife” or “husband” while referencing a school break or holiday. There’s nothing inherently wrong with that, either, of course, it’s just that most folks are only going to toss around words like “indoctrination” when it’s LGBTQ+ people doing it.

“That video is not a French kiss,” parent Justin Kanew said at the meeting in reference to the video that enraged some. “It is a quick peck that I had to watch three times to catch. And if it was a boy and a girl, there is zero chance anyone would have cared.” 

“Being gay is not like COVID,” quipped Matthew Hill during the meeting. “You cannot catch it, people.”

In speaking to News Channel 5, Ginny Bailey of PFlag pointed out that the initial Twitter post from Moms on Liberty “borders on irresponsibility,” as it includes the students’ faces. Bailey said she’s worried the youth may be “targeted” thanks to the post. 

What is the school saying? According to the district, the investigation into the incident is ongoing. According to local outlet WSMV, the district said it doesn’t choose which clubs can participate in the parade or not; either all groups are allowed to participate or none are. The district did say if any rules were violated, students involved will be disciplined, though it’s unclear what those rules may be. 

You can watch a clip from the meeting below.

YouTube Video

As well as the interview with Bailey.

YouTube Video