Parent That Questioned Graduation Gown Change for Transgendered Student Targeted

PORTSMOUTH, NH - The Portsmouth Police Department is investigating a graffiti vandalism incident against a local parent that questioned the high school’s decision to change graduation gowns to a single color in order to accommodate a transgendered student, according to WHDH-TV.

The home of Beth Ricci, the mother of a graduating high school student, was targeted after she questioned the decision by the school district to change the tradition of boys and girls wearing different gowns and not long after doing so, was targeted by graffiti at her home, calling her “racist scum” that should “die” and “burn in hell,” according to the report.

Ricci said the incident had nothing to do with transgenderism but changing everything, including tradition, for a single student. Some students were also upset about the decision but others thought it was being blown out of proportion.

Police aren’t calling the graffiti incident a hate crime although there is an active investigation of the vandalism.

For more than a century, according to WMUR-TV, boys and girls in Portsmouth have worn separate gowns; Hanover High School also recently made the change to a uni-gender gown.

Read the full story at whdh.com.

Credit: WHDH-TV, 7-News.