Midland Superintendent Michael Sharrowrejected the claim outright in an email sent Jan. 20 to parents, staff and community members. There have never been litter boxes within MPS schools.. Natalie Pate covers education for the Statesman Journal. But the vast majority of them still identify as humans, while sometimes adopting an animal-like persona and engaging in short-term roleplay, according to furries and experts, one of whom noted that there are no litter boxes at furry conventions. For those of us who subscribe to neither ideology, the whole thing is another sad example of the polarization that is destroying the US, the same divisive talk amplified by platforms like Twitter and Facebook. And it demonstrates how quickly some elements of truth can be twisted and mashed up with fully debunked assertions to create a viral narrative amplified by prominent politicians, as well as commentators with large audiences. 1995 - 2023 by Snopes Media Group Inc. Silver Honda CRV seen fleeing towards Manton Ave. Cranston stand off https://fb.watch/iZ0CaYIkSb/?mibextid=ykz3hl, Copyright John DePetro. It is important that we continue to promote these adverts as our local businesses need as much support as possible during these challenging times. Brogan, Dylan. Change), You are commenting using your Facebook account. The school reportedly said in a statement that its students were demonstrating a range of issues from mental health, anxiety or identity issues. Its a safe bet that the girl identifying as a cat fits this description. (LogOut/ I get to the third row and I hear this meow! Uhhh, excuse me? Excuse me? Opponents said they believed the main purpose of the book was "to promote various agendas" related to the LGBTQ community in an attempt to "make it more acceptable in the mainstream. Michigan Republican Party, archived Jan. 24. In Kentucky earlier this school year, officials were perplexed by a group of middle school students who dressed and acted like cats, apparently after accepting a social media challenge, according to a report by news station WLWT. He said the costumes violate the school dress code: "A small number of Meade County High School students have violated the dress code policy during the early part of the school year. That has not stopped such rumors from circulating on social media, where they have been repeated like a game of telephone, often with descriptions of friends of friends who supposedly saw such things firsthand. Six Republican members of the North Dakota Legislature introduced a bill Wednesday that would send a clear message to nonhuman-identified students . The world continues to spiral down into the seemingly bottomless pit of insanity, as Bristol University issues official guidelines for staff in the correct use of pronouns for those who identify as "catgender," reports the Daily Mail. John DePetro Show Tags: john depetro north kingstown rhode island Please Share This how to craft sawmill in terraria . The photos are from 2016 and show a Norweigan adult who is capable of speaking, not a non-verbal, school-aged child. since when do cats attend public school? "Let's instead focus on real issues impacting Oregon youth.". Any cats involved? As well as corroboration from a superintendent, principal or teacher who can say this is happening in their district. The buckets also contain candy for diabetic students, a map of the school, flashlights, wet wipes and first aid items. A Cork school has notified gardai - over bogus claims that a student has decided to identify as a cat. The Meade County School district is dealing with an unusual situation: a group of high school students is attending school acting like and dressing as cats.The superintendent tells WLKY the situation is being addressed, but according to a concerned grandparent, its an ongoing problem that has many students on edge. "Unbelievable.". Midland Public Schools Superintendent Michael Sharrow said: There is no truth whatsoever to this false statement/accusation! USA TODAY has previously debunked other false claims that school districts accommodated children who behave like animals by providing litterboxes or allowing them to lick their "paws" in class. I dont understand why these kids are acting so un-human and not happy with themselves, she said. "Let me be clear there is no truth whatsoever tothis false statement/accusation! A SCHOOL in Michigan has bizarrely been accused by outraged parents of installing litter boxes in bathrooms for students who identify as cats and dogs. The Michigan incident started when a mom of kids at the Midland School District, about 130 miles northwest of Detroit, spoke at a school board meeting about a rumor which she took as fact alleging the school was accommodating furries by providing litter boxes in unisex bathrooms. Urban decay: There's a reason criminals love Los Angeles's district attorney, Student borrowers advocate Biden debt relief program amid Supreme Court battle, Trump and DeSantis attend dueling Republican conferences as GOP primary field heats up, China will target the US homeland in war over Taiwan, Army leader predicts, Users recoil at new iPhone feature that slows charging when clean energy isn't used. Since insurance wont cover vet visits, and I doubt most vets want to participate in the Im a cat delusion, Im thinking their options are limited to doctors. The rise of the litter box rumor shows the power of false claims that start on social media to shape political discourse. Her campaign declined to answer questions about Ganahls claims, but in one interview with a local Fox affiliate, she suggested theres a lot of this going on in Jefferson County. Whos doing it? And this little girl in the very front row says, You have to meow back at him; he identifies as a cat. Are you kidding me?, The student stormed out of the classroom when she laughed at him, she said, and the schools administration fired her: They said We no longer need your services if you cant identify with all the children in the classroom.'. Heidi Ganahl, the Republican nominee for governor of Colorado, speaks at a forum in Denver on Sept. 30. No wonder they get confused, self conscious, low self esteem, and a lot more negative issues. Yesterday I heard something, and I was stunned, and today I am equally stunned and a little bit upset. NBC News reported: A Nebraska state lawmaker apologized on Monday after he publicly cited a persistent but debunked rumor alleging that schools are placing litter boxes in school bathrooms to accommodate children who self-identify as cats. Kentucky school district: Students are dressing and acting like cats. "This is still a problem. 5 min read. A Wisconsin school district has a set of "furry protocols" that allows students to identify as cats. / students identifying as cats. In the days before McKenna appeared on Peta's podcast, Pesta gave a few presentations that mentioned this alleged email. The rumour alleged that pupils at Banff Academy were identifying as cats (Image: PA) A SCOTTISH secondary school has had to deny reports that some of its pupils were identifying as cats and defecating on the floor after school officials refused to provide a litterbox. "The grandmother is urging parents and family members to attend the Meade County School Board meeting on Sept. 14 to request further action. Rumors began to surface that these students were permitted to use litter boxes in bathrooms to accommodate them, but the districts superintendent debunked such stories. The photos show a young woman wearing costume cat ears. The false claim that children who identify as cats are using litter boxes in school bathrooms has spread across the internet since at least December, when a member of the public brought it up at a . According to reports, the girl allegedly is phenomenally bright and does not speak during school hours. Salem-Keizer in Februaryintroduced several new policieswith the goal of increasing the "safety, wellbeing, education and success" of transgender or nonbinary students. Rand Paul was vindicated this week regarding COVID. 2022, https://isthmus.com/api/content/5442e938-b445-11ec-8e34-12274efc5439/. The unnamed teenage girl, who is in Year 8, is reportedly allowed to. The litter boxes in schools hoax (also called the litter box canard) is a false rumor alleging that certain North American schools provide litter boxes in bathrooms for students who "identify as cats", or who participate in the furry or otherkin subcultures. [Doctors] dont have evidence that [the treatment] will be the right one, McHugh said in 2019. The story was picked up by several widely-read sites, included in Tucker Carlsons daily newsletter, and reshared on prominent Twitter accounts in addition to going viral on Facebook. Identifying as human isn't good enough anymore, so now some must cross species to identify as a cat to gain attention. Snowstorm Could Hit Metro Detroit Friday: Possible Snow Totals, Detroit Bakery Reopens In Midtown With 25 Cent Cookies, DTE Energy Will Give Automatic Credit To Those Affect By Power Outage, Here's How Many Guns Were Sold In Michigan Last Month, 2 Women Sexually Assaulted While Walking In Ann Arbor, Police Say, Popular Oakland County Restaurant, Music Venue Abruptly Closes. I think I will be cat all my life.. Across the country, from New York to Iowa and Texas, the same rumor swept through districts this spring. "So, now in schools, if a kid wants to identify as a furry, . The inmates cannot continue to run the asylum. Are you sure you want to delete this comment? Since then, however, it has spread to numerous US states and now to Scotland. Within a few months, similar rumors began to spread in the U.S., where they quickly became culture war fodder. contact IPSO here, 2001-2023. Really. The superintendent at the school in Kentucky told WLWT the students violated the dress code, and that the administration had addressed the situation. students identifying as cats. And no, one seems to want to stop this and instead encourage it in their schools. A substitute teacher uploaded a video to TikTok claiming she was asked to "meow" at a student who identified as a cat. Cisgender refers to individuals who identify with the gender assigned to them at birth. In a follow-up video the teacher admitted she made up the story to create awareness of what kids are going through at school. She didnt elaborate, so its not clear if she was criticizing school policies for allowing students to identify as different genders or arguing that kids needs arent accommodated. AM 1380 / 99.9 FM WNRI. On the October 11 episode of his Joe Rogan Experience Spotify podcast, Rogan claimed that a school "had to install a litter box in the girls room because there is a girl who's a furry, who . There have never been litter boxes within MPS schools.. Rogan did not name the school, and his publicist did not respond to a request for comment. Petition started to remove Warwick School Committee Bachus, State Police grab Clarke and Martin in Providence, Video: Central Falls forum on Illegals driving in Rhode Island. Of local interest, Hansen insisted, are policies that she claims accommodate students who identify as furries, or cats and dogs. Republican lawmakers in numerous states are attempting to pass bills that would require teachers to notify parents if their child is identifying as transgender at school. This thing has gotten out of control with politicians just wanting to have a talking point, said John McDonald, former director of campus safety at Jefferson County schools, whos now a school security consultant. In April 2022, a false rumor about a school district in Wisconsin implementing a set of "furry protocols" in order to deal with a rash of students who were "identifying as cats" was presented as genuine news on a conservative podcast. After we confirmed North Kingstown is allowing students to identify as cats, we have now learned another school district is allowing a student to identify as a dog.The school is trying to deal with a student who dresses as a dog, lays on the floor, eats food out of a bowl on the floor and barks and growls at other students. '"The grandmother said a petition to end the practice was created by students and has more than 1,000 signatures. Human civilization has to put a halt to these destructive behaviors. This was the case fora Jan. 21 Facebook post that wasviewed over 8,600 timesand a tweet shared over 5,000 times. Im sure you can appreciate the difference between internet bullshittery and a legitimate, verified instance of a school district making allowances for furries or putting litter boxes in school bathrooms. However, as USA TODAY reported, the district's superintendent shut downthe rumor soon after Maddock shared the video on Jan. 20. Hearst Television participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites. "It's sad were at a point in our culture that a rumor like this even needs to be addressed," said Blair Stenvick, the communications manager for the Portland-based nonprofit Basic Rights Oregon. Its only used to kind of sensationalize untruth, and to harm our community, in particular our transgender, nonbinary and gender-expansive youth, said Nadine Bridges, executive director of One Colorado, an LGBTQ rights organization, when asked about the litter box rumors. room for rent in reykjavik long term. In an episode of Spotifys The Joe Rogan Experience podcast this week, host Joe Rogan told former U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard that a litter box was installed in a school that his friends wife worked at for a girl who identifies as an animal. A clip of the discussion quickly began to circulate on social media. No, schools do not have litter boxes for students, Complaint filed against Pennsylvania school district alleges discrimination against LGBTQ students, alongside other extreme and baseless rhetoric, Moms for Liberty, a conservative activist group, Surveys and pre-publication research from Furscience also indicate. In the latest "trend" by high school students, they're dressing up and acting like cats in schools. The claim that the Waunakee school district had implemented furry protocols appears to have originated with an email sent to Pesta. Catalina Lauf, a Republican congressional nominee in Illinois, tweeted this month that schoolchildren were using litter boxes in her state. Hey wait -I seriously allergic to cats. Skibbereen Community College bosses said they contacted authorities over crazy claims. Theyre all just like yours: A friend of a friend says it happened in their daughters district, or a teacher friend said she heard a school put a litter box in a bathroom. subscribe to our print edition, ad-free app or electronic newspaper replica here. Hansen noted the rumor warranted "more investigation" and did not make a claim about who had installed the litter boxes. In this divisive/contentious world in which we currently find ourselves, I ask that if you hear wild accusations that dont sound like something in which your Midland Public Schools Board of Education, Administration, District would be part, take a moment to send an MPSConnect message to me, he wrote, providing the MPSConnect link. "I heard that at least one of our schools, in our town, has, in one of the unisex bathrooms, a litter box for the kids that identify as cats I am really upset, as a parent, that my child is put in an environment like that.". As the number of people identifying as trans and nonbinary has increased in recent years, particularly among young people, so has the amount of anti-LGBTQ legislation from conservative politicians. We have excellent schools here. Anti-monarchy activists 'turn Buckingham Palace into polling station'. It's The #2 BEST Way To . Nebraska Lawmaker Apologizes for Debunked Litter Box Claim. NBC News, https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/nebraska-lawmaker-apologizes-debunked-litter-box-claim-rcna21951. It is unconscionable that this afternoon I am sending this communication, Midland Public Schools Superintendent Michael Sharrow wrote in a community message Thursday. ! February 27, 2023 . The next day, the popular conservative Twitter account Libs of TikTok tweeted the video of Hansen at the school board meeting. Send comments, questions and tips to her atnpate@statesmanjournal.comor 503-399-6745. An Iowa newspaper reported some students in a small town in their state identified as cats. www.youtube.com, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sF2k85dOs_Y. Editors' Code of Practice. 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