Itawamba County School District, which refused to let Constance McMillen attend her own high school prom, and then allegedly aided in creating a separate private prom that Constance wasn’t invited to, is settling charges filed against it by Constance and the ACLU, according to a release.
Constance will receive $35k in damages and attorneys fees while Itawamba will institute a non-discrimination policy that includes sexuality orientation and gender identity — the first school, notes the ACLU, to do so in Mississippi.
Technically, this falls into the “win” column: Constance succeeded in having her school confess its sins and pay her for failing one of its students (though really, it failed all of its students). And while Constance did manage to graduate from another high school a tad more accepting, and did get to dance at a number of proms, and did get to serve as grand marshal in gay pride parades, and did become a beacon of hope for all queer teens, she was also a high school senior victimized by her own school, and that’s never something to be happy about.
Jackal
They need to fire most of the Itawamba County School District administration – those responsible for the decisions to discriminate. From a business stand point, those people cost the school $35K + their own attorney fees. And, of course, they caused the rest of the country to see them as the petty, backwater bigots they are.
Cam
I still LOVED the anti-gay people who would come on here to post against Constance, and their big insult to her was “She’s just looking for attention!”.
Well yeah, the only way bigotry like what that school did, can survive is if nobody notices. Good for Constance for bringing attention to the narrowminded baswards attitudes in that school. Hopefully in the future, the students will have some kind of realization of just what terrible people they were in High School.
Jeff K.
Too bad I only decided to come out in college. I could be rich right now!
RomanHans
Right on, Jeff K.!
Well, unless people harassed you so much you killed yourself. But otherwise it could have been really cool!
S
@Cam:
“Hopefully in the future, the students will have some kind of realization of just what terrible people they were in High School.”
That would be nice. But I doubt it.
Kev C
$35,000? Not enough. Should include punitive damages.
Aaron in Honolulu
YYYYAAAAYYYYY!!!!! She wins in the end!!! A big FUCK YOU to all her haters.
samthor
if this makes other schools think twice before discriminating and sanctioning discrimination against LGBTQ students, it will be worth it.
thank you Constance & ACLU
TBA
Well, another celebtity martyr for the alternative to straight sex crowd to swoon over.To make the people of this district pay
for administrations mistake of a bad choice is basically not going to win many friends for the LG crowd.But then anyone who is straight and has worked with LG know they are not really very social with straight society and also not very accepting themselves and really like it that way as it would ruin the mystique and underground cult like status they both embrace and
shun when it’s to their advantage.
Cam
@TBA: said..
No. 9 · TBA
Well, another celebtity martyr for the alternative to straight sex crowd to swoon over.To make the people of this district pay
for administrations mistake of a bad choice is basically not going to win many friends for the LG crowd.
Two things.
1. The people of that district were the ones who planned the fake prom, so pay up rednecks.
2. Saying that standing up for the right not to be discriminated against isn’t going to win gays any “Friends” is like saying that minorities should have just shut up 60 years ago and not pushed for civil rights legislation because that wouldn’t win them any friends.
Inbreds like the people that did that to Constance are never going to be our “Friends”, they will never respect us…much as we will never respect them as they are most likely toothless part time employees of a Dairy Queen.
So while they will never respect us, they will at least be forced to deal with us. It’s the law, so suck it up Elmer.
Jeffree
Let’s hope other schools take note & follow suit by passing –and enforcing– antidscrimination policies.
We know many won’t want to, but they also see the price 2 pay & the bad rep they get if they don’t !
Constance, we’re all rooting for you at college. Thousands of your LGBT sisters/brothers look forward to watching u blossom !
jeffree
Aaron in Honolulu
@TBA: Sorry, your straight vs. gay argument is lame. Tough shit sour grapes! 🙂