How Do You Spell Mississippi? L A W S U I T
See UPDATE below!
The Mississippi school district that canceled an annual prom rather than allow a lesbian student bring her girlfriend is now learning a tough lesson thanks to the ACLU: discrimination is illegal, there are laws and consequences in this country, and you can get sued.
The Mississippi school, Itawamba Agricultural High School, is violating 18-year-old Constance McMillen’s First Amendment right to freedom of expression by canceling the prom. In a statement announcing the cancellation, the district did not mention McMillen or the issue specifically, but said,
“Due to the distractions to the educational process caused by recent events, the Itawamba County School District has decided to not host a prom at Itawamba Agricultural High School this year.”
Via USA Today:
ACLU attorney Christine Sun said her organization receives requests for help every year from students facing anti-gay prom policies. The complaints are especially prevalent in the South where attitudes toward sexuality are more conservative, she said.
In the announcement, the school board encouraged the community to organize a private prom. “It is our hope that private citizens will organize an event for the juniors and seniors. “We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this causes anyone,” the statement concluded. School officials did not respond to calls seeking comment.
The announcement alarmed McMillen.
“Oh, my God. That’s really messed up because the message they are sending is that if they have to let gay people go to prom that they are not going to have one,” she said. “A bunch of kids at school are really going to hate me for this.”
Yahoo! News reports,
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 main stream media actually has done a good job picking up the story. After Ellen DeGeneres posted via Twitter, “HS in Mississippi is canceling prom because of this. Come on, prom should be for everyone,” a fan via Reddit, another social media site, asked Ellen to host a prom herself for the Mississippi students. N0 word yet on whether Ellen will.
UPDATE:
Thanks to the ACLU, there is now a Facebook page, “Let Constance Take Her Girlfriend to Prom!” which has over 11,000 fans! It’s latest entry:
“Constance McMillen is scheduled to appear on The Early Show on CBS. Currently set for 7:30, but TV schedules can change at the last minute, so check early and often.
Time:7:30AM Friday, March 12th”