FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 24, 2021
Bluffton-Harrison MSD School Board has chance to prove that Bluffton is truly inclusive
Bluffton, IN
As the Bluffton-Harrison Metropolitan School District School Board convenes this evening to create a policy of what is deemed controversial or political and whether symbols of inclusion should be banned from the classroom, we need to look towards the dark history of Bluffton of being exclusive.
As people drive to the meeting tonight, many will see the words “Building an inclusive community!” on the “Welcome to Bluffton” sign. However, it wasn’t that long ago, Bluffton was known as a “sundown town” where people of color were excluded for activities within the city limits or risk retaliation if they were seen after sunset. A few years ago, a photo was mailed to Former Mayor Ellis of a Sikh-owned restaurant opening with a note attached that read, “We don’t wear Turbans in Bluffton, we speak English.” Those in the marginalized community can give hundreds of examples of how our 96% White community has repeatedly shown that if a person looks, worships or loves differently than the Main Street USA stereotype then they are not welcome here.
For many people living in an area that portrays this exclusive mentality, home becomes a hostile and fearful place. More times than not, those people leave to find a more inclusive place to live, work, and raise families. When we exclude good people from our community it is lessened by their loss, and when good people leave Bluffton and Wells County it becomes more challenging to attract world class businesses and retain talented young people in our workforce. Who can blame them for leaving for more welcoming and inclusive places?
The LGBTQ Pride flag is a symbol of inclusion that is welcoming to all. When an LGBTQ student, or family members from a LGBTQ home see a rainbow flag, they know they have entered a welcome and inclusive safe space. Former Mayor Ellis said in an interview several years ago, “Nearly every one of us can think of a time in our lives when we were excluded from something, whether it was the baseball team or cheerleading in school or families who have split up. Maybe we've been excluded from our own families at some point in time.” If we take away those limited spaces that are safe and inclusive, what type of message are we sending to those marginalized students?
The rainbow flag is a welcoming symbol of love and acceptance to students who may not always feel that at school, in the community or even in their own home. Lesbian, gay, and bisexual students are five times more likely to attempt suicide than their heterosexual peers. When those students are in an accepting and inclusive environment those rate drops significantly. If a teacher is not able to hang a simple symbol of acceptance and inclusion in their classroom, is Bluffton really building the inclusive community as the sign says as we enter the city? And if Bluffton is not willing to show that they are willing to be inclusive, then the welcome sign should be changed to say, “If you are different than me, then you are not welcome!”
The hope is that the Bluffton-Harrison Metropolitan School District School Board makes the right decision and not only allows the LGBTQ Pride flag and other symbols of acceptance and inclusion to remain in the classroom but encourages the acceptance and safety of all students no matter their appearance, background, sexual orientation, while discouraging the negative behaviors that threaten the safety and well-being of our children and future graduates of the BHMSD school system.
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