Chaos erupts over Pride flag motion at Catholic school board meeting

Police had to be called in as chaos erupted at a Niagara Catholic District School Board meeting where a motion was called to exclude the Pride flag from its flag raising policy.

But long before trustees had a chance Tuesday evening to debate and vote on the motion, brought forward by St. Catharines/Niagara-on-the-Lake trustee Natalia Benoit, chaos erupted during a delegation by Jennifer MacArthur, president of the Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association’s Niagara Elementary Unit,

“Okay, if we could please stop the recording. It was very clearly stated at the beginning of the meeting, and it is also posted throughout. There will be no recording,” Chair Danny Di Lorenzo said to a member of the gallery. Di Lorenzo asked visitors to respect rules of decorum while speakers presented, including allowing them to speak uninterrupted, and not to shoot video of the presentations as recordings of all meetings are posted on the board’s website the following day.

WATCH: Chair Danny Di Lorenzo admonishes a member of the gallery who is disrupting Jennifer MacArthur's presentation. NCDCB/Vimeo

Just a few minutes after MacArthur returned to her presentation Di Lorenzo once again had to ask her to stop so he could deal with a member of the gallery who was being disruptive.

“You are going to Hell! You don't know the Bible. I'll challenge you any day. Let's go right now,” an unidentified woman screamed at the trustees. “You show me in the Bible – in scripture – where the Pride flag, the trans colours are God-approved.”

Eventually, police were called to assist clearing out the gallery.

Niagara Regional Police media relations officer Const. Phil Gavin confirmed Wednesday that 3 District (Welland-Pelham) constables responded and helped clear between 80 and 100 people from the gallery.

“Some persons initially refused to leave,” Gavin said in an emailed response to inquiries from PelhamToday. “Some of the persons from the gallery remained on the property till approximately 9 p.m."

He added the police were present “to protect the peace and to ensure the safety of everyone involved.”

There were no arrests or charges stemming from the incident.

The fracas resulted in the meeting being recessed for 30 minutes with trustees retreating to the trustee lounge at Di Lorenzo’s request while the building was cleared.

MacArthur, who was speaking in opposition of the Benoit motion was able to complete her presentation. She said banning the flag would be “an affront to our commitment to equity, diversity and the fostering of respect for all in our schools.”

MacArthur was followed by parent Suzanne Taras, who voiced her support for it. Taras urged trustees to not promote what she called “flag ideology” during her remarks.

“Gender dysphoria will not be solved with endless cheap stickers and flags," she said.

When trustees began considering the motion, Benoit said Catholic schools “have a distinct mission to educate students within the context of Catholic values and teaching.”

She added: “Flying the Pride flag is perceived as endorsing a particular social or political stance that is not aligned with the teachings of the Catholic church.”

But Welland-Pelham Trustee Paul Turner remained a staunch supporter of flying the flag.

“In short and for the record, I was the trustee a number of years ago who made the motion to fly the Pride flag for our board,” he said. “It was passed and through prayer and reflection, I still feel the same way.”

Trustees wound up voting 5-2 against the motion. Only Benoit and Niagara Falls trustee Joe Bruzzese were in favour while Chair Danny Di Lorenzo, Vice-Chair Rhianon Burkholder, and trustees Larry Huibers, Jim Marino, and Paul Turner voted against the motion to ban the flag.

Tuesday was not the first time Benoit was linked to controversy over the board’s position on flying the Pride flag. She had brought a similar motion before the board in 2023. That motion was also defeated, and Benoit was later suspended after video surfaced of the trustee comparing the Pride banner to the Nazi flag outside the board offices after the meeting. She was subsequently suspended for five months. Last month’s meeting was Benoit’s first after she completed her suspension.