This past week was National Solidarity Week for the LGBTQ+ community, an organized event with the purpose to raise awareness around the issues in the community. It was also a time to celebrate LGBTQ+ peers and teachers, embrace differences among our community, as well as encourage more people to stand in allyship with LGBTQ+ students. In order to establish a unified group for solidarity week, students dressed in the same color every day, and by the end of the week, the school would have worn a whole rainbow of colors to symbolize LGBTQ+ pride. On Monday, November 7, Flint Hill community members were asked to dress in red and pink. For Tuesday, Huskies dressed in orange and yellow, while on Wednesday people wore green. Thursday was blue and purple, and finally, on Friday, November 11, students and staff got to wear rainbow colors in celebration of pride!

One of the student-leaders of Flint Hill’s Gender Sexual Alliance (GSA) and a planner of solidarity week, Sophomore Jasmine Coates, offered her perspective on what it was like monitoring the event and what she hoped students took away from it. “During solidarity week I spent a lot of time reminding my friends to make sure they wore the correct color for the corresponding day,” Coates said, detailing that some students were frustrated with having to search their closets for the right color and said they found it difficult. She then explained to them that when it comes to expressing yourself, there are much greater sacrifices people have to make every day.  “For some queer students, we are forced to mask part of our identities while at school for the sake of our own safety. Adding to the weight a student regularly carries, queer students are forced to carry a lot,” she said. All in all, Coates hopes that solidarity dress was an eye-opener for some of her peers because of the fact that many queer students all around the country are struggling with challenges many people around them fail to recognize.

Coates also commented on the most memorable thing she experienced during this past week of solidarity, saying that “the most memorable thing for me from solidarity week was seeing teacher participation. As a student at Flint Hill, I feel seen and safe with my teachers and that is something  I will always cherish and be grateful for.” Coates gives an amazing example of why unity, acceptance, and representation are such important things to introduce into a school community. She herself stated part of the reason she feels connected to Flint Hill is because of the accepting staff. That is why in the future it is crucial for the community to continue to plan and execute events such as solidarity week so that unrepresented students feel that they all have a home here as a Husky.

Image Citation:

Progress Pride Flag. Grand Rapids Pride Center, grpride.org/product/

     progress-pride-flag/. Accessed 16 Nov. 2022.