Josh Alexander, a 16-year-old student at St. Joseph’s Catholic High School in Renfrew, Ontario, Canada has been suspended and arrested for protesting against transgender people’s use of female bathrooms and stating that God created only two genders.
Taking to Twitter, Alexander said he was suspended and arrested on February 6.
“I have just been arrested and charged at my Catholic high school for attending class after being excluded for indicating my intent to adhere to my religious beliefs,” he tweeted.
The school allows biological males identifying as transgender girls to use bathrooms designated for females, per Catholic News Agency.
I have just been arrested and charged at my Catholic highschool for attending class after being excluded for indicating my intent to adhere to my religious beliefs. pic.twitter.com/vTkaSoTnFp
— Josh Alexander (@officialJosh_A) February 6, 2023
A video circulating on social media showed the moment the student was arrested and led into a waiting police car.
16 year old Josh Alexander, has been suspended from St Joseph Catholic High School in Ontario Canada for protesting against transgender peoples use of bathrooms and for saying God created only two genders.
The leadership in the school told him his continued attendance would be… https://t.co/4ioM5nABhX pic.twitter.com/xl8YLUWYGu
— CitizenLenz (@CitizenLenz) February 20, 2023
The school first suspended the student in November for “bullying”, after he expressed his religious and moral objections to the school’s transgender bathroom policy.
When he tried attending classes on February 6, he was suspended again and arrested for trespassing.
The student has since been released but remains suspended for the remainder of the school year.
Alexander told EWTN News Nightly that when he began attending the school, he “was informed by female students that male students were using the female washrooms; this was an issue that came up in class debate and I used that platform to share my opinions as every other student had the opportunity to do, and I quoted some Scripture, I said that there is only two genders. And apparently, because there [are] transgender students in the class, this was considered bullying.”
Alexander, who is Baptist, said he tried to raise the transgender bathroom policy issue with the school administration but was ignored.
The student decided to organise a protest alongside other concerned students but was suspended two days before the November 25 scheduled date.
The protest went on as planned outside the school’s premises.
However, the school said Alexander’s action amounted to “bullying” trans students.
Alexander said, “My issue wasn’t with the individual students. I have an issue with the system that is going to encourage this form of misbehaviour.”
He added, “I do sympathise with the confused transgender students because they’ve been wronged by their parents and by society and by the education system that has pushed this indoctrination on them. But at the same time that doesn’t mean I’m going to condone their wrongful behaviour, especially when it’s a violation of my female peers’ privacy.”