Equal Rights in Schools? Nope.
When I was growing up, it was a fairly common thing to see girls going to the prom together when they didn’t have a date – or when all of the prospective dates simply didn’t measure up. They’d go as couples, they’d go as groups, they’d dance together rather than sit on the sidelines. I know of at least one straight girl who came to the prom in a tux.
But if that girl is a lesbian, and the girl she’s going with is her girlfriend, and the school would rather cancel the prom entirely than allow lesbians to take part in a time-honored right of passage like the prom.
In the case of young Constance McMillan, it is perhaps fortunate that she is fairly well-versed as an activist, and knew just what to do and which channels to pursue to get the ACLU involved. Now, she’s fighting not just for the opportunity to go to the prom with her date of choice, but for the entire student body to have a prom at all.
Meanwhile, the school officials are trying to put together a “private” prom where they can exclude whomever they might wish without getting sued. This reminds me all too much of a tradition that is, unfortunately, still common where I live where there’s a school prom that everyone gets to go to, and a private prom that only the white kids get to go to. It’s not right. It’s sanctioned segregation, regardless of the minority being left out.
I’m proud of Constance McMillen for standing up for her rights like she’s done. She’s bound to be getting a lot of abuse from the student body for being the reason their prom was canceled, but she’s become a hero to so many more in the last few weeks. We need more activists like her.
Related Articles
- Gay Navy Wife Finds Hope in Constance McMillen (lezgetreal.com)
- Mississippi school cancels prom after student requests same-sex date (timesunion.com)
- Lesbian Hero Speaks out about Prom Cancellation -Lesbian of the Month… (lezgetreal.com)
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