'Tasteless' poster at LaSalle high school taken down following concern from parents
A LaSalle mom is expressing concern online over a “tasteless” poster that was in a classroom at her daughter’s school.
The poster has since been taken down. It said: “Dressing inappropriately is like rolling around in manure; sure, you’ll get attention, but mostly from pigs. Remember, no backs, no butts, no boobs, no bellies.”
Tanya Hughes posted a picture of the poster at Sandwich Secondary School in LaSalle on her Facebook page on Tuesday night.
“So I spoke to the school in regards to this tasteless poster in my Daughter’s grade nine math class. They seem to think there is nothing wrong with it, the message and is allowing this…. I think it’s disgusting!!” Hughes wrote.
Her post garnered hundreds of comments and shares online.
Deemed inappropriate
The Greater Essex County District School Board confirmed Wednesday the poster was removed.
“When this poster came to our attention, we deemed it inappropriate and it was taken down,” said GECDSB spokesperson Scott Scantlebury.
He said the board is committed to safe, welcoming and inclusive schools that respect the dignity of all students.
“We are currently reviewing the board regulation for student dress and creating interim guidelines for school staff to ensure the application of appropriate student dress policies do not adversely affect any students,” said Scantlebury.
Further discussion of student dress policies and procedures is anticipated. A motion was proposed at the May 17 meeting of the Board of Trustees to develop a board-wide student dress policy.
Revisiting dress code policy
School board officials say a dress code review hasn’t happened since 2015.
“Anytime we're developing rules that we're expecting students to follow, we really need to be considering them from an equity lens,” said GECDSB trustee Jessica Sartori on Wednesday. “We have a couple of really excellent models out there provincially right now that can help us develop and updated policy.”
Sartori told CTV News a review request was made Tuesday in light of recent events surrounding student dress codes in Ottawa and that the GECDSB has been undertaking a significant review of equity practices across the board.
“We always know that there is room for improvement. We're on that path. And I think that things like the dress code that can have an important impact on students daily lives is one of those things that should be included in that process,” she said.
Sartori suggests the policy implemented by the Toronto District School Board in 2019 is a good basis for new policy, if the review motion is passed in June.
“One of the things that that I would like to see during the development of this policy is not necessarily that we just sort of asked to borrow Toronto District School Board's,” Sartori explained. “But that there is engagement with stakeholders across the board and in different communities to assist with that process.”
Meanwhile, Hughes is pleased that the sign has been removed, but remains adamant that continued conversation is necessary.
“I think parents within that school or any school should talk to their children about it,” she said. “Maybe this is something that will affect people within their homes and they can have conversation with their young teens and say, be comfortable with your body. Or with young boys, it's okay that you have attraction but you can't act on it.”
Hughes added, “I'm hoping that with the school board, something more positive will come about and make positive changes and we need to kind of change with the times. It's 2022. Women fought for these rights for us to be equal and it's just kind of taking a step back a little bit.”
- With files from CTV News Windsor's Chris Campbell
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
"It's a bit of a complicated pattern; we've got a lot going on," said Jennifer Smith of the Meteorological Service of Canada in an interview with CTVNews.ca on Wednesday. "[As is] typical with weather, all of these things are related."
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Police tangle with students in Texas and California as wave of campus protest against Gaza war grows
Police tangled with student demonstrators in Texas and California while new encampments sprouted Wednesday at Harvard and other colleges as school leaders sought ways to defuse a growing wave of pro-Palestinian protests.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.