Nebraska high school shutters newspaper after students dare to cover homophobia during Pride Month

In a scenario that sounds straight out of the start of a dystopian teen novel, administrators at Northwest High School, a public high school in Nebraska, have closed the school’s student newspaper after more than 50 years of operation right after the paper published articles on LGBTQ+ issues, as covered by local outlet the Grand Island Independent.

The newspaper, called the Viking Saga, includes LGBTQ+ articles in its June edition. Given that June is Pride Month, it’s not terribly surprising. Articles included an editorial opposing Florida’s Don’t Say Gay law as well as a piece on the history of Pride Month and the history of homophobia. (As a gay person myself, I for one can’t imagine how cool that would have been to see in my school newspaper. Anyway ...)

An email from an employee of the school to the Independent alleges that the paper was shuttered because the school board and superintendent were “unhappy” with the editorial content of the most recent issue. Hmm.

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