Open box cutter thrown at LGBTQ students during Iowa homecoming parade, parent says
Someone threw an open box cutter at LGBTQ students when they walked in the homecoming parade, a parent and the school says.
Jennifer Pitkin, the mother of one of the students, opened up about what she called a “hate crime” against her 15-year-old daughter, Ava in a Sept. 25 post on Facebook.
Ava and 14 of her peers from Linn-Mar Community Schools’ Spectrum group, which is the high school’s Gay-Straight Alliance, were excited to represent the group in the school’s homecoming parade, Pitkin said in the post.
“Fifteen brave kids did their makeup, they built each other up, and they bravely walked together,” Pitkin wrote. “You all, this community let us down. Not only did these CHILDREN hear slurs as they walked, one person threw an OPEN box cutter (see photo) that nearly hit Ava, our sweet, carries bugs outside to save them, Ava.”
Photos show the box cutter as well as the Pride-inspired outfit Ava wore during the parade.
“My 15 year old just experienced what, frankly, is a hate crime,” Pitkin said. “She just wanted to support her friends and family in the community. She is destroyed. These kids give, and give, and give, and this is what they get?”
The school district confirmed the incident in a Sept. 26 statement posted to Facebook.
“We were saddened to learn that an otherwise spectacular Homecoming parade last evening was disrupted by a few individuals who elected to harass, ridicule, and throw objects at some of our students in the Linn-Mar Spectrum parade entry,” the statement says. “This behavior is unacceptable and does not reflect the values of our district.”
The statement went on to say staff reached out to the students and has partnered with law enforcement to investigate.
In an update posted Friday, Sept. 27, Pitkin said the Spectrum facilitator at the school reached out about giving the kids a parade redo of sorts and ensuring they have the best homecoming possible.
The city of Marion would also have extra police at the dance, Pitkin said.
“I can’t imagine these kids worrying about what they’re walking into when they should be making their core memories,” she said. “I don’t know what the other kids are going through, but mine has been home for the last 2 days. She’s just not ready to go back. She’s okay. It’s just really, really heavy.”
Marion is about a 130-mile drive northeast from Des Moines.
This story was originally published September 27, 2024 at 5:35 PM with the headline "Open box cutter thrown at LGBTQ students during Iowa homecoming parade, parent says."
