Police called to Niagara Catholic School Board meeting amid Pride flag motion debate

Police were called to a Niagara Catholic District School Board meeting last night as debate over a motion to ban the Pride flag from school properties grew hostile.

A union leader’s speech against the motion introduced by school board trustee Natalia Benoit was interrupted when one person in the audience refused to stop recording video and others jeered the speaker.

Board chair Danny Di Lorenzo asked the audience in the gallery to leave and for security to be called in.

A spokesperson for the school board says Niagara Regional Police were called as a result of the chaos and officers removed some people from the building.

Jennifer Pellegrini says about 100 people had attended the meeting, most of them in support of Benoit’s motion.

The motion was ultimately voted down 5-2 after the meeting resumed.

Earlier this year, the board censured Benoit for six months after an independent investigation found she had breached the trustee code of conduct with her comments comparing the Pride flag to the Nazi flag.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 23, 2024.

The Canadian Press