ABOVE: Supporters attend the Pasco County School Board’s meeting on Dec. 3. Photo courtesy Pasco Pride.
PASCO COUNTY, Fla. | More than 100 LGBTQ advocates and allies attended a Pasco County School Board meeting in support of LGBTQ youth on Dec. 3.
The effort was organized by Pasco Pride cultural liaison Myndee Washington. Supporters wore purple to show solidarity with bullied LGBTQ youth and Pasco County Schools’ use of a best practices guide designed to assist educators in better understanding LGBTQ students.
Washington is also the creator of Safe Schools for All Students, or SSAS. The group is dedicated to safe and inclusive schools in Pasco County and was formed in response to anti-LGBTQ activists who have targeted school board members for more than a year.
For each anti-LGBTQ speaker, the group donated funds to The Trevor Project, raising nearly $300. The board meeting can be viewed below via Pasco County Schools:
“We overwhelmingly outnumbered the hate group’s speakers!” Pasco Pride celebrated via social media Dec. 5. “It was a night of joy and tears as older speakers relayed their own traumas from navigating the school system without any protections, and current students begged for their rights to be upheld and their safety to be protected.” View the full post and photos below:
Pasco Pride urges supporters to join organizers for the school board’s next meeting on Dec. 17. For more information, visit PascoPrideFestival.org, their Facebook page or the SSAS Facebook page.
To contact or to learn more about the Pasco County School Board, click here.
