This Catholic college dared to relocate a 'pride' flag, and students are not happy

On Feb. 27, students at St. Edward’s University, a Catholic school in Austin, Texas, hosted a demonstration to protest the relocation of an LGBT “pride” flag from a cafe on campus.

Reportedly, the protest involved dozens of students who wore custom shirts with the phrase “Dear St. Ed’s, DON’T HIDE OUR PRIDE” printed across them. The student activists purchased 1,000 pride flags and displayed them near Equity Hall, the new location of the relocated flag.

The protesters previously raised $500 by hosting a “Project Pride Flag” donation campaign throughout the past week, according to the Austin American-Statesman.

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“We are currently not speaking with admin because they already know what we want. We’ve already had meetings with them, and they’re not listening,” protester Zachary Benoit told the Statesman. “This is for us to show them that we have numbers and we are a big part of this campus.”

Last summer, the coffee shop where the flag was initially placed in 2018 was remodeled. One consequence of the remodeling was that the pride flag was moved to Equity Hall, which caused the protest on Tuesday because, as the students say, Equity Hall is not visited as often as the coffee shop and thus the flag gets less exposure.

”This is a Catholic institution. I came here and I felt comfortable being myself as a trans man,” St. Edwards student Louie Moore recently told the Statesman. “And now the administration is shushing LGBTQ students and our representation. That’s how I view it. That’s how I feel.”

More than 800 individuals have signed a petition that was launched on Feb. 16 to bring back the flag to the cafe

In a statement to CBS Austin, St. Edward’s said that the flag is “displayed in Equity Hall Lounge to represent and celebrate our vibrant and welcoming Hilltop community.”

Professor Alexandra Barron, who teaches literature at St. Edward’s, expressed support for the demonstration. 

“I just really assumed once the university heard that the pride flag really meant a lot to the students, they would change their minds,” Barron told the Statesman. “I was really shocked when they didn’t.”

According to the St. Edward’s website, Dr. Barron teaches courses on Gender Studies, helps to coordinate the Women’s and Gender Studies minor, and is a faculty advisor to the “PRIDE” and “Trans Wellness Org.” groups on campus.

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Reportedly, Barron canceled her class on queer art and activism and attended the rally. 

“We’ve had queer faculty, staff and students here for, I’m sure, as long as the university has been around, but it’s been a struggle for our queer community to be able to be open,” she said.

Campus Reform has contacted St. Edward’s University and Alexandra Barron for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.