JACKSON, Miss. — An 18-year-old Mississippi lesbian student whose school district canceled her senior prom rather than allow her to escort her girlfriend and wear a tuxedo said she got some unfriendly looks from classmates when she reluctantly returned to campus today.
Constance McMillen said she didn’t want to go back the day after the Itawamba County school board’s decision, but her father told her she needed to face her classmates, teachers and school officials.
“My daddy told me that I needed to show them that I’m still proud of who I am,” McMillen told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. “The fact that this will help people later on, that’s what’s helping me to go on.”
The district announced Wednesday it wouldn’t host the April 2 prom. The decision came after the American Civil Liberties Union told officials a policy banning same-sex prom dates violated students’ rights. The ACLU said the district not letting McMillen wear a tuxedo violated her free expression rights.
McMillen said she felt some hostility toward her on the Itawamba County Agricultural High School campus.
“Somebody said, ‘Thanks for ruining my senior year.’” McMillen said.
The school board issued a statement announcing it wouldn’t host the event in Fulton “due to the distractions to the educational process caused by recent events.”
The statement didn’t mention McMillen or the ACLU. When asked by the AP if McMillen’s demand led to the cancellation, school board attorney Michele Floyd said she could only reference the statement.
“I guess they would rather do that than what’s right, what’s constitutionally correct,” McMillen said.
Same-sex prom dates and cross-dressing are new issues for many high schools around the country, said Daryl Presgraves, a spokesman for GLSEN: Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, a Washington-based advocacy group.
“A lot of schools actually react rather than do the research and find out what the rights of these students are,” said Presgraves, who was preparing to facilitate a discussion about anti-gay bullying at a National Association of Secondary School Principals meeting.
The school district had said it hoped a privately sponsored prom could be held.
McMillen said if that happens, she’s sure she’ll be excluded.
“It’s a small town in Mississippi, and it’s run by an older generation with money. Most of them are more conservative and they don’t agree with it,” she said.
Fulton Mayor Paul Walker said he supports the school district’s decision.
“I think the community as a whole is probably in support of the school district,” Walker said of the town of about 4,000.
The mayor said he didn’t know of any private efforts to host the prom.
Presgraves said his organization hears about school districts that prohibit same-sex prom dates and gay-straight alliance clubs at schools. He said those kind of policies are detrimental to gay students.
“It sends a message that these students shouldn’t be treated the same,” Presgraves said.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
