Lambton-Kent District School Board officials say there is no concern for the safety of staff and students after a threat was made toward Blenheim District High School this week.
John Howitt, director of education for the Lambton Kent District School Board, said Chatham-Kent police were called to the school on Thursday after a threat was made to the school's principal and property.
A social media post from Councillor Rhonda Jubenville showed a photo of the Canadian flag and Pride flag being flown together outside of the school.
In the post, Jubenville suggested that any flag flown under the national flag was an "unacceptable" practice and encouraged anyone who felt "impassioned" about it to respectively contact the school about it.
Howitt told CK News Today that he felt the threats were linked to intolerance, specifically to the flying of the Pride flag.
"I don't know whether the person drove by the school and saw the flag and chose to make the phone call or whether the Facebook post triggered the phone call," said Howitt.
According to LKDSB's Display of Flags protocol, locations with only one flagpole must ensure the National Flag takes a position of prominence at all times when displayed with other flags. Any other flag cannot be larger than the National Flag of Canada, and no flag can fly higher than the National Flag of Canada.
The Government of Canada website states “the manner in which flags may be displayed in Canada is not governed by legislation but rather by established practice."
The rules applied by the federal government are "in no way mandatory for individuals or organizations; they may serve as guidelines for all persons who wish to display the National Flag of Canada and other flags in Canada.”
Howitt said the Pride flag was raised on May 17 in honour of International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia.
"We don't get calls and complaints about another flag being flown with the Canadian flag on a single pole when it's other types of flags," said Howitt. "We only get it with this [Pride flag] and that's why I say it's about intolerance, not flag etiquette."
All Lambton-Kent District Schools will be flying the Pride flag for the month of June.
CK News Today has reached out to Chatham-Kent police for comment.
