Olympia High School “Turn Our Backs On Hate” Unity Rally June 7

In response to a protest announced by the Westboro Baptist Church (sic) the Olympia Washington School District has announced the following:

“As you may have heard, representatives of the Westboro Baptist Church from Topeka, Kansas are planning to demonstrate in front of Olympia High School on North Street on Thursday, June 7 from 7:15 to 7:45 a.m. This well-known controversial group is in town to protest the marriage equality bill that was recently passed by the Washington State Legislature. ”

On Thursday, June 7th, our OHS students are planning a “Turn our Backs on Hate” Unity Rally in front of Olympia High School beginning at 7:15 a.m., in response to the Westboro Baptist Church’s protest that will take place across the street at that time.

The OHS students are crafting their message.  Adults who would like to offer friendly and positive support to our students are welcome to join us outside of the main entrance to OHS on North Street from 7:00-7:45.

We are asking all of our adult supporters to:

1.)  Wear Olympia Bear colors of blue and white

2.)  Not bring any signs, but rather support student and their rally for community unity against hate, bullying and harassment

3.)  Please support the guidelines that have been given to our students which include:

• Being respectful and safe
• Not engaging with any protesters
• Staying on the school side of the temporary barriers
• Following all school rules and state laws

4.)  Park at The Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd on the corner of Henderson and North Street

We believe this is a great opportunity to showcase the incredible class and dignity of our student body and local community. We think this is something that can bring us all together and make us a stronger school and community and we are inspired and proud to see so many people who are passionate around making a difference and standing up against hate in our community.  Thanks for your support and for making our schools and community a positive and welcoming environment for all people.

The full statement is here:

http://osd.wednet.edu/community/response_to_westboro_baptist_church_demonstration

This post is  in solidarity with the Olympia School District and their ”Turn our Backs on Hate” Unity Rally. 

This entry was posted on June 3, 2012 at 5:12 pm and is filed under Direct Action, Events, Press Release, Solidarity. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.