Gay teen in prom case is local pariah, national heroine


http://www.cnn.com/2010/LIVING/03/26/constance.mcmillen.tension/index.html?hpt=C1

*Constance McMillen in news after school cancels prom; she wanted to bring girlfriend

*Support nationally shows in TV visits, prom offers, Facebook fans and scholarship

*At home, Mississippi high school senior deals with tensions, anxiety, "hostility"

*Her and ACLU's fight inspires others, making her poster child for LGBT student activism


Constance McMillen has become somewhat of a national celebrity. She never asked for it, it just happened. All she wanted to do was to take her lesbian girlfriend to Senior Prom. Trouble is she lives in a backwardly conservative hick-town like Fulton, Mississippi. Her high school acted "stupidly," by canceling the prom, and look at the havoc, the attention, the legal fees, the school has brought upon itself by this insensitive act they chose to pursue. It is so sad and shameful for this country that places like Fulton, MS and many others in the South and other parts of the country, that would deny someone the chance to go to prom because of sexual orientation, or even race, or religious affiliation. It's 2010, and we're America, but many Americans still act as though it's the 1950s or 60s. I am fully in support of gay couples being allowed to go to prom, and any other school sponsored event. What the high school did was wrong, and they should be ashamed of themselves.

Weigh in, everybody.

"In many ways, she stands in an awkward balance. Though there are some people who support her in Fulton (population about 4,000), the overarching tension and what she described as "hostility" that she feels at school and in her community is in deep contrast to the reception and groundswell of support that's overwhelmed her nationally."

The school brought this on themselves, and so did those in the community that choose to remain biased against gays. If there's any "hostility" it should be directed at the school, in a peaceful manner of course.

this really saddens me...

i saw that ellen offered to pay for the prom. i wonder if they could host it off of school grounds and have it work? *sighs*

she wasn't asking to show up naked, she asked to show up with her girlfriend. i went to MY prom with another female (not as a couple) because i was fighting with my boyfriend. nobody said a word so long as you had a ticket.

it's certainly discrimination. i'm hoping that doesn't happen here when my daughter decides to take her girlfriend to prom.

It IS discrimination. Beyond reproach. It saddens me, and also upsets me. The fact that this sort of childish behavior from schools, churches, employers, etc. can be tolerated and allowed to continue in this country. The country we so "blindly" call "the Land of the Free." The American Flag has many stains on it with the shameful acts of a few citizens in this country that would give our great nation a blemish of shame and disgrace. I sincerely hope, a greater good, a greater lesson, is served from what unfortunately had to happen in the case of Constance. People will get no sympathy from me that choose to act in this manner of hate and prejudice.

imo she should have just took her not said anything and just appeared with her

this was a grand standing play to bring much needed attention to the prejudice that is much too strong against the gay community

that being said let us keep this in perspective

my guess is this was a staged attempt to grand stand the issue and bring it to the media fed fest it has become

yes she may want to take her girl friend to the prom but if that was the true intent she would have just shown up at the prom with her


just a thought

but hey

what do i know

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/scavenger/detail?entry_id=59910

This won't surprise you (since I live in San Francisco) that a local high school nearby is inviting Constance and her girlfriend to their prom. They are even raising money to pay for their flights. I haven't heard yet if she has accepted the invite.

It disgusts me that this kind of thing can still happen and that people are still so homophobic. But, the good thing is she seems to be getting lots of support, which is great.

I think the issue is mute, since none of the kids will now have a prom. Religious affiliation is hard to discern without an individual sharing some information as is sexual orientation however RACE is right there for everyone to see from birth. So I disagree with comparing this issue with racism,,,but thats beside the point.

Do I feel she should be able to go to the prom, sure. Do I feel those paying for and holding the prom have a right to set up a THEME for that dance,,,sure. If it was set as a straight couples dance, and other guidelines were in place such as one date per attendee, or a certain dress code, or things of that nature ,,I dont see the harm. I would much rather see a push for an alternative prom for any non traditional type couples(same sex, cross dressers, trans...etc..) as well as the traditional one. I think it is wonderful she stands up for herself,and am not extremely passionate about it one way or the other,,, but I can definitely see both sides.

That's good news, Row. However they have had a groundswelling of support from many other schools too across the country. Even celebrities including Ellen have offered to help pay for or even host a prom for Constance and her girlfriend. Now she faces the tough choice of which one to go to. But I think the moral victory would be to have the prom at her very own high school as she intended.

i didn't see that, robin...i think she was trying to clarify since the rules said it had to be an opposite-sex date. she only asked to avoid being turned away at the door.

i don't see it as grand-standing in the least...this is a tiny town of 4000 people.

my understanding is that she doesn't WANT to go to some strange prom at a school she doesn't attend. she wants to go to her OWN prom.

and she should be able to.

maybe it does not really matter

as i said it is wrong to bar them imo

it is a govt function

and the only true argument against homosexuality is a religious one that school should lose all govt funding

but hey what do i know

Oh you do? What about mixed couples going to a prom? A white boy with a black girl, or a black boy with a white girl? You really don't think that's an issue in the South, or some other conservative communities? What if I went to prom with an Arab girl, complete in headress hijab? You don't think it would be an issue? Yes, this particular concern is focused on sexual orientation, but the other biases exist in this country as well concerning school social events.

I saw no problem with her asking permission. The school brought much more attention to this than was ever needed by canceling the prom.

that is exactly my point,, you can SEE a white boy with a black girl,, you cant SEE a homosexual male with a homosexual girl,,you just see a boy and a girl, so the discrimination is VASTLY different.

One is about what people can see from birth that cant be hid or undone,, the other is about what people observe someone DOING, which is a choice.

I know my opinion wont be popular but the ONE relationship that we always will NEED is that of the male female union which creates life. A dance that sticks to that basic guideline is not so horrendous in my opinion. whether it be a black and white male and female or an arab and italian male and female, should have no bearing.

As far as this particular case, I am really not passionate about it one way or the other. Im not particularly offended by a traditional male female dance, but Im not gonna kill myself if other pairings are included either.

"""""basic guideline is not so horrendous in my opinion""""""

what of those with another opinion

what of those that hav the opinion blacks should not vote

nor that asians should not speak in public

nor hispanics can be anything bt landscapers

opinions should not make law that is up to the constitutions of the united states and the several states

"and the only true argument against homosexuality is a religious one that school should lose all govt funding"

Good point!

i think the issue is that this is a public school. equal and appropriate education and all that.

as a public school, activities shouldn't be able to discriminate.

I agree. I am not talking about laws and constitutions though, Im talking of a school dance,,which often times have guidelines and themes