He apologized for his actions, and the case was dismissed in Rhode Island court. Ted Kennedy, to be its commencement speaker.Ī year later, McManus was arrested for drunk driving, leaving the scene of an accident and refusing a chemical test. In 2012, he successfully pushed Anna Maria College in Paxton to rescind its invitation to Vicki Kennedy, the pro-choice widow of Sen. In his 18 years as bishop of the Worcester diocese, he has repeatedly railed against transgenderism and LGBTQ rights, including blocking the sale of a diocese-owned Northbridge mansion to a married gay couple. McManus’ feud with the Nativity School is the latest highlight of his conservative ideology. The colors represent unique aspects of life, namely: pink. Thirty volunteers hand-dyed and stitched the first two pride flags for the parade. While the church has long taken a harder line on LGBTQ rights, Pope Francis has urged parents to support their gay children and has endorsed civil unions. The original Pride flag with eight stripes, as designed by Gilbert Baker, was created in 1978 and flew publicly for the first time at the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day Parade celebration on June 25, 1978. Conference of Catholic Bishops and the pope have previously spoken in favor of the Black Lives Matter movement. Cardinal Sean O’Malley, who leads the Boston Archdiocese, the U.S. His argument is in stark contrast to the Catholic Church’s previous support of Black Lives Matter. “As the Bishop of this diocese, I must teach that it is imperative that a Catholic School use imagery and symbols which are reflective of that school’s values and principles so as to be clear with young people who are being spiritually and morally formed for the future,” he said. Regarding the gay pride flag, the bishop argued that sacramental marriage is between a man and woman. In a recent statement on the diocese’s website, McManus said the church “teaches that all lives are equal before God and the law and that all lives demand respect regardless of race, gender or ethnicity.” However, he added “the flag with the emblem Black Lives Matter has at times been coopted by some factions which also instill broad-brush distrust of police and those entrusted with enforcing our laws. Phil Saviano, key clergy sex abuse whistleblower, dies at 69 How Roman Catholics Conquered Massachusetts: The Inside Story With COVID-19 Hurting Church Finances, Catholic Parishes In Boston May Consider Merging "The Black Lives Matter and Pride flags fly below the American flag at our school to remind our young men, their families and Nativity Worcester staff that all are welcome here and that they are valued and safe in this place," the school said in a statement. School President Thomas McKenney declined to elaborate what the bishop's threat could mean for the school.
#Gay pride flags real windows#
School administrators said they’ve been flying the Black Lives Matter and gay pride flags since January 2021. During the coronavirus pandemic, rainbow paintings, signs and flags have adorned many of the road-facing windows of UK homes to signify support for our amazing. The Nativity School is an accredited tuition-free, all-boys school mainly serving students of color from low-income communities.
In response, the Nativity School said the flags are meant to show that all students “do matter and deserve to be respected as Christian values teach us.” Although the school said it operates within the diocese, officials made the distinction that it’s not a diocesan school. McManus said the flags symbolize messages that conflict with Catholic teaching, and suggested the Nativity School of Worcester could risk losing its Catholic identity if administrators don’t take the flags down.
embassies, including in India and Australia, are highlighting their support for LGBTQ people.A Worcester Jesuit middle school and the Diocese of Worcester are at odds over Black Lives Matter and gay pride flags flying on the school’s campus.ĭiocese Bishop Robert J. The Biden White House also reversed an order issued by Trump’s then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on flying the Pride flag and some U.S. Biden also reversed a ban on transgender people openly enlisting and serving in the military. On his first day in office, Biden signed an executive order directing federal agencies to protect LGBTQ people under all federal laws that prohibit discrimination based on sex. "We are proud of them."Ī 2015 RAND study found that 5.8 percent of service members identified as either lesbian, gay or bisexual. "This is no way reflects any lack of respect or admiration for people that (are from) the LGBTQ+ community, the personnel in and out of uniform who serve in this department," Kirby added. He said that the decision was made because it could open the door for other challenges to the rule set in place in July. "There won't be an exception made this month for the pride flag," Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said.