(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Threats and angry emails prompted administrators to postpone Hampshire High School’s spring musical about a gay student on Friday, but District 300 Supt. Susan Harkin said officials are reconsidering those plans.
Last week’s decision to postpone Hampshire High School’s “The Prom” musical was not a reflection of Hampshire’s students — or their desire to show the school’s progress toward supporting the LGBTQ community — but out of safety concerns, Harkin wrote in a letter to students and parents.
She said the district, based in Algonquin, has received “hate-filled emails” and threats to out students in the Gay Straight Alliance.
“Due to the seriousness of these circumstances and our concern for our students, especially those in the LGBTQ+ community, the district believes a comprehensive safety plan must be in place before the musical can proceed,” Harkin wrote.
The superintendent added that District 300 and Hampshire High School administrators have already started to develop that safety plan.
The musical is based on the real story of a Mississippi high school that canceled prom after it tried to ban a lesbian from bringing her girlfriend.
Harkin promised to provide another update on Friday.
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