Protesters clash for 2nd time at California school board meeting over Pride month
Written by ABC Audio. All rights reserved. on June 21, 2023
(GLENDALE, Calif.) — Protesters clashed once again outside the Glendale Unified School District’s board meeting on Tuesday in response to the district’s recognition of Pride month.
Police said no one was arrested during the protests on Tuesday. Earlier this month, as the board met to vote on recognizing the month honoring the LGBTQ community, three people were arrested during fights between protesters and counter-protesters.
The three were arrested for unlawful use of pepper spray and willfully obstructing officers in the course of their duties, police said after the protest on June 6.
No LGBTQ issues were on the agenda for the Tuesday board meeting, but the planned protest continued, ABC Los Angeles affiliate KABC reported.
Police had urged residents not to engage in violence and officers were deployed in riot gear during the protests Tuesday.
“To the Glendale community, your police department is fully prepared and equipped to safeguard and protect our community, including against any agitators desiring to utilize this planned protest as an opportunity to cause violence and disturbances,” a statement from the department posted earlier on Tuesday read.
The board has recognized the month for several years, but renewed anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment in politics has led to growing tensions against the community.
The district said in a June 5 statement that disinformation “about LGBTQIA+ curriculum, sex education, and supporting transgender and gender non-conforming youth” had been spread on social media about the district’s effort to acknowledge LGBTQ+ identities.
The Department of Homeland Security warned that threats of violence against the LGBTQ+ community are on the rise and intensifying across the country.
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