The motion before Orange City Council to cancel its involvement in this month's Rainbow Festival is not only a slap in the face for the city's LGBTQIA+ community and its allies; it also sends a negative and confusing message to our children, who are brought up to value inclusiveness and equality and to celebrate differences.
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I wonder how future generations will look back on this discussion.
My guess is it won't be with pride, but with embarrassment and shame that an insidious right-wing message of divisiveness and disinformation found a conduit to the table.
Comments such as 'council is not responsible for gender and sexuality' will be deservedly (without even the need to consult a biology textbook) seen as laughable.
At a time when a history of discriminatory behaviour towards diverse groups is being acknowledged, we should take these lessons from the past and ensure our current decisions and legacies are a source of pride, not shame.
