Michigan Students to Don “Gay Apparel” After All

After a bit of controversy, students in an elementary school in Traverse City, Mich., will once again be singing about donning "gay apparel."

Chris Parker (pictured), principal of Cherry Knoll Elementary School, says the line in "Deck the Halls" has been restored, the Associated Press reports. The school's music teacher had changed "gay apparel" to "bright apparel" because students giggled at the use of "gay."

Parker had told local TV station WPBN Monday that he was disappointed with the teacher's move, and he subsequently announced the restoration of the original lyric as the students prepare for a holiday concert later this month. He said the matter constituted a teachable moment for students and staff.

Several people who commented online on the station's story called the teacher's decision ridiculous. One wrote, "Can one word in a 150-year-old classic Christmas carol really offend someone?"

Some wondered how the students -- first- and second-graders -- would know that "gay" meant homosexual, while others pointed out that the children were probably giggling simply because they perceived it as a taboo word. Only a few comments were overtly homophobic; one said the use of "gay" to mean homosexual was a way to "distroy" the English language.