I have a friend who is an elementary school principal. Several years ago, he was contacted by a local pastor who brought his congregants’ concerns to the principal regarding the school’s upcoming “crazy” week.
You remember? Those silly weeks where each day had a different theme and kids were encouraged to dress up according to the day’s theme.
One day was Cowboy Day, another PJ Day. It was that.
Some of the pastor’s flock, however, were uncomfortable with one specific theme, Rainbow Day, where children could dress up according to their favorite color of the rainbow.
Furrowed brow, his hushed voice underscoring the severity of the situation, the pastor explained some of his members were troubled by the implications of Rainbow Day, fearful the school was highlighting LGBTQ+ issues.
My friend was stumped, taken aback; those things never crossed his mind. In fact, teachers and staff were not even involved in the planning. The daily themes were chosen by the students.
The principal gave it some thought. He was measured and respectful. He was honest. His response to the angry and suspicious parents? Kids just like rainbows.
I was reminded of this story when I read about an eyebrow-raising performance by the Kelly Walsh High School Marching Band during the recent State Marching Band Festival in Casper.
The show was provocative, the musicians’ faces were painted with red stripes, underscored by ominous, thrumming percussion.
At one point, a band member is mock-dragged to the stage then stabbed.
It reminded me of many culturally suspect scenes from pretty much any King Kong, Indiana Jones, or Pirates of the Caribbean movies. Some viewed it as glorifying paganism, others found it in poor taste given recent tragedies in our student population.
Marching band shows have evolved from rah-rah halftime songs to full-blown theatrical events. Indeed, the bands at the festival were judged on a compendium of factors, including musical excellence, execution, foot work, formation, visual, and overall effect. The band that does it the best wins. (KW took top prize, by the way)
That’s the power of art. If it stirs something within us, then mission accomplished. Several years ago, I was a chaperone for a high school choir trip to Vienna, Austria.
In between performances we toured the city sites, including the highly revered Albertina Museum.
As we walked through rooms of Monet’s and Picasso’s, some of us wandered into a Keith Haring exhibit. Several of Haring’s works included graphic sexual imagery.
It was uncomfortable - especially because I was in charge of a group of teenagers. I tried to appreciate Haring’s craft but was supremely uncomfortable with the content. I and other chaperones hustled the kids to the next room. I was the adult in the room.
The fine arts give us license to embrace or reject an idea. We get to choose how deeply we want to contemplate, if at all, the story placed before us. We are free draw our own conclusions to what we see, hear, or believe but we should be careful to not lose perspective.
Let’s lower the temperature here and consider for a moment that perhaps KW was not trying to communicate any message other than musical and visual excellence.
What is it that makes us see a violation around every corner? Not everything is an attack on our personal rights, an attempt to hijack our identity, or a threat to our faith.
For my brothers and sisters in the faith community, 1 John 4:4 reminds us the battle is already won, so why are we are threatened by an eight-minute performance, forty-five seconds of which made us squirm?
Are we that fragile?
Maybe this was an accidental turn into the naughty room at a museum.
What if the band director’s concept of the show was guided by the criteria set forth for all bands and free from deep state, predatory messaging? Some ideas may be ill-conceived, in poor taste or downright objectionable. But maybe it was just a show.
Sometimes a rainbow is just a rainbow.
Susan Stubson is a sixth-generation Wyomingite. She writes about faith, politics and issues facing the American West.
