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Yes, the Okanagan Skaha school district has laid in a stock of kitty litter.

No, it’s not that the district has embraced diversity to the point of allowing students to use separate bathrooms complete with litter boxes, if they identify as a cat — as some have suggested on social media.

The litter is merely useful to have on hand during the wintertime, when added traction is needed on frozen surfaces.

“Senior management is aware of those rumours circulating on social media,” a district spokesperson said, adding the same story is gaining popularity in other parts of sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½

Wilbur Turner with the queer-support organization Advocacy sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½ in Kelowna said the conspiracy theory probably started because some U.S. schools bought kitty litter and buckets for use as toilets in the event of an active-shooter lockdown that keeps students in their classrooms.

He said the cat-identity story is just one of the conspiracy theories around sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½’s sexual orientation and gender identity curriculum, which stresses safety and inclusiveness.

“This is an example of how facts are distorted to fit a narrative and used against a minority community,” Turner said. “This is harmful and damaging as it dehumanizes people and attempts to characterize them as somehow deviant and dangerous.”

Dan Walton is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter with the Penticton Herald. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½.