Community | March 11, 2010 | 25 comments

Lesbian teen back at Miss. school after prom flap

source: http://www.710knus.com/article.aspx?id=495c81be-3124-486a-848b-da65799cd22e

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curtisreed

http://www.710knus.com/article.aspx?id=495c81be-3124-486a-848b-da6579...

Lesbian teen back at Miss. school after prom flap
By AP News
Thursday, March 11, 2010
An 18-year-old Mississippi lesbian student says she got some unfriendly looks from classmates when she returned to school after officials canceled the senior prom because of her request to escort her girlfriend and wear a tuxedo.

Constance McMillen says she didn't want to go back, but her father told her she needed to face her classmates and school officials in Fulton. McMillen says one student told her, "Thanks for ruining my senior year."

The Itawamba County school district announced Wednesday it wouldn't host the April 2 prom at McMillen's high school.

The decision came after the American Civil Liberties Union told officials a policy banning same-sex prom dates violated students' rights.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) _ A northern Mississippi school district will not be hosting a high school prom this spring after a lesbian student sought to attend with her girlfriend and wear a tuxedo.

The Itawamba County school district's board decided Wednesday to drop the prom because of what it called recent distractions but without specifically mentioning the girl's request, which was backed by the American Civil Liberties Union.

http://www.710knus.com/article.aspx?id=495c81be-3124-486a-848b-da65799cd22e

MY COMMENTS
I can pretty much predict what Current subscribers will say about this news, but I thought it was worth sharing.

While I support the Boulder County (CO) Catholic school that banned the return of a student whose parents are lesbians because their lifestyle is directly in violation of their church teachings, I do not agree with a public school cancelling a school function because a couple of lesbians will attend.

Why? It's quite simple: public schools are PUBLIC, and need to stay out of issues of "morality" and simply stick to teaching their students, ensuring their safety, and don't need to get into issues of sexuality--whether that means being forced into teaching about homosexuality and masturbation etc, or by telling students they have to be accompanied by a partner of a specific gender.
  1. groups:
    Community
  2. tags:
    Lesbian,  Public Schools,  Homosexuals
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25 comments // Lesbian teen back at Miss. school after prom flap

  • crystalman
    • 0
      crystalman  
    • Image

    • Recognizing that one is a man or woman and knowing how you are at variance physically and psychologically from the other sex is good.
      Healthy, good and….um…normal.

    • 3 years ago
  • crystalman
  • JohnA
    • 0
      JohnA [removed]  

    • See, this is a case of someone not wanting equal rights, but special rights. Every other student had to follow the rules, but she wanted a special dispensation just for her to not follow the rules that every other student had to. That's not equal, that's special. Because of her sexual orientation, she wanted a special rule just for her alone that no other student could have. Then the ACLU gets involved, so to prevent a taxpayer funded lawsuit, the school said fine, have your own prom, we're not getting involved. There is nothing about this that involves "equal rights", she had equal rights.

    • 3 years ago
  • common_sense_please
    • 0
      common_sense_please  

    • The school administrators acted like bigger kids than the students -- seriously this girl has been a student at the school for at least a year so it was not shocking that she was a lesbian. And seriously who cares if she wanted to wear a tuxedo to prom -- its not like she said hmmm I think I will show up in my "wife beater" and my ratty jeans and converse sneakers. That and prom is just a giant waste of money anyway -- by the time the kid's parents pay for the dress and the shoes and the tux rental and the limo rental and the motel room and the fine for allowing underage drinking they are over $1000 in debt essentially -- and how do the kids "repay" them? They show up for 5 minutes get their picture taken in their overpriced outfits and leave to go somewhere else anyway.

    • 3 years ago
  • AmericanStandard
    • 0
      AmericanStandard  

    • Complete B.S!! I will say though that with school budgets being out of hand maby the first thing we should be cutting are dances, proms and other unnecessary high school garbage.

    • 3 years ago
  • arsenalalbania
  • obamaisajoke
  • Still_Falling
  • common_sense_please
    • -1
      common_sense_please  
    • obamaisajoke:

      the only ones with the problem and "being a fucking asswipes" were the administrators that refused to just let the kids be and enjoy their prom. Again its not like the girl wasn't already an out lesbian sitting in class wearing whatever clothes she put on that morning-- so who cares if she came to prom in a tux with her girlfriend? That and unless prom committee and the school itself had a specific dress code banning women from wearing pants -- its really not up to the school to say what can and can't be worn at this late stage in the school year -- because only public nudity is considered illegal.

    • 3 years ago
  • tylervictoria1
  • Tyr
    • 0
      Tyr  

    • It is things such as this on a somewhat continuous basis that create the negative view that so very many people have of Southern states...they will almost always live up to the most negative stereotype in circulation if given the opportunity.

    • 3 years ago
  • Saladin
    • +1
      Saladin  

    • I'm surprised curtis, almost everything I've read from you would never lead me to believe that you'd agree with the lesbian side of an issue on something like this.

      Consider my opinion of you officially changed, if that means anything to you.

    • 3 years ago
  • Elligirl
    • 0
      Elligirl  

    • Wow, that's unbelievable. I've heard of students being banned from attending, but cancelling the entire event outright? Where's the outrage of the other parents? I would be calling for firing of the school faculty and local school board if that happened in my child's school.

    • 3 years ago
  • bike10
    • +2
      bike10  

    • Just few years ago they would cancel the prom if black or white wish to attend the prom. Good old south takes two steps backward and punish all the students.

    • 3 years ago
  • obamaisajoke
  • arsenalalbania
  • indecisiveh
    • +1
      indecisiveh  

    • This is your public school on conservative/republican values. This is the story for those of you who elect these ideologues. You are wrong and continue to be proven wrong. How many kids have to suffer before we completely move away from conservatism/libertarianism that permeates our mainstream culture.

    • 3 years ago
  • curtisreed
    • 0
      curtisreed  
    • indecisiveh:

      no, that wasn't overly simple-minded. not at all.

      i don't agree with this one particular situation, but conservatives are right in my opinion about far more issues than the Libs are.

    • 3 years ago
  • Saladin
    • 0
      Saladin  
    • curtisreed:

      It's invariably a matter of personal values over whether you choose left or right, almostn ever about right or wrong.

      That being said, on -social- issues, I can seldom think of a time in which a conservative solution, that is one that stands alone and in opposition to a liberal idea in every respect, has ever been sensical or appropriate to people's needs.

      Conservatism, by definition, is either about thinking everything is a-ok, that there is inherent value in tradition or that change is worse than the excesses of the current status-quo.

    • 3 years ago
  • nursediesel
    • +1
      nursediesel  

    • This sux, in more than one way. First: it's a public school so who made the decision?Was it put before an open public meeting of the school board? Second:Could there have been a compromise? Can two people that go"stag" have their picture taken together? Can they participate in the procession? If so could the girls in question have gone stag and one show up in a gown and the other a tux? OR My girlfriend used to wear pants (under her dress/skirt) at the bus stop in the winter and change as we neared the school. Could Constance have worn a long black skirt with a tux shirt? (I wear one with a long skirt or suit, I have purchased at The Limited) and a jacket over top? then remove the skirt in the lav. and have the tux pants on? I went to a prom with a senior while I was at college. He had a crush on me, it made his senior year. I wore a satin tunic top and a long leopard print midi vest and matching leopard pants. My hair was very long and done in long curls from my scalp down. I wore a white corsage that complimented the suit! He wore a tux. All the other girls had on uptight typical prom gowns. No one stopped us from entering but I know everyone was watching us and talking. Some came up to the table and congratulated us for doing it....We even went to the other after prom activities!
      Third: Why punish the whole school? What's wrong with a girl wearing a tux?

    • 3 years ago
  • Saladin
    • 0
      Saladin  
    • nursediesel:

      Judging by the location and the fact that the ACLU said they were violating student rights, I imagine they did it as a big fuck you to people who didn't agree with them.

      Bigoted people tend to be like that. Mississippi isn't exactly known for rational, forward thinking and tolerance.

    • 3 years ago

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