News/Commentary

Michigan school board demands LGBTQ mural in middle school health clinic be removed

September 20, 2023 | | Print Article

A school board in Michigan has ordered a middle school to remove a controversial LGBTQ mural from its healthcare clinic following a vote to boot it on Sept. 11 for promoting transgenderism and witchcraft.

(Video Credit: FOX 17 WXMI)

“The school board voted in June to cut ties with Family Health Care, which operates the Child and Adolescent Health Center inside Grant Middle School, in addition to two other school-based health centers in the area, according to WOOD-TV, an NBC affiliate in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The centers provide free medical, dental, and behavioral health care to children, according to the Family Health Care website,” NBC News reported.

Grant Public Schools Board of Education voted on a new contract with Family Health Care after reconsidering cutting ties with them. They are the provider that operates the Child and Adolescent Health Center located inside Grant Middle School. Following a contentious month of negotiation, the board finally authorized a new contract with the caveat that the mural had to go by the end of October.

“The mural was painted by a high schooler in Grant, Michigan last October after winning an art contest. Several parents quickly objected to the image after seeing it contained, among other things, a student wearing a T-shirt with the colors of the transgender Pride flag, two students wearing the colors of the bisexual Pride flag, and another wearing rainbow Pride colors,” Fox News reported.

“Parents also claimed at the time that the mural promoted witchcraft after including a demon face inspired by a popular video game called Genshin Impact, and a ‘Hamsa hand,’ also known as the Hand of Fatima or Hand of Mary. Grant Public Schools later sent a statement noting that ‘some features’ of the mural were ‘not part of the original submission’ and the matter ‘was not on the board agenda,'” the media outlet continued.

“We understand and recognize there are different opinions regarding the mural. We feel it is of the utmost importance to continue in a thoughtful, respectful, and deliberate manner. At this point, all parties involved are working together and advancing forward to come to a positive, and agreeable, resolution,” a statement from the school announced in October.

“We encourage members of our school community who engage in discussions and debate to do so in a respectful, civil manner. We do not condone, and we will not tolerate discrimination, harassment or bullying whether in word, deed or on social media,” they equivocated.

After the controversy concerning the mural exploded, Grant Public Schools announced that “at the student artist’s request, the mural will be returned to its original form as originally submitted and approved by the administration.” That request resulted in the removal of the images of the video game character, but the LGBTQ colors remained in play which incensed parents.

The school seemed very intent on keeping the peace among parents and students concerning the mural and eventually yielded to parents’ demands.

Following the vote in September, Family Health Care spokesperson Alan Neushwander said in a statement, “While it is disappointing that the mural must be removed by the end of October, it’s a compromise we reluctantly were willing to accept to ensure the children of the Grant community continue to have access to medical and behavioral health care.”

The new contract also requires the clinic to begin paying the school district a minimal fee in order to use the clinic space inside Grant Middle School.

Users on X agreed with the parents wholeheartedly on removing the mural:

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