A tug-of-war is underway at a Louisiana high school because the principal refuses to let a gay student dress in a tuxedo for her prom.

Carroll High School in Monroe, Louisiana.

On one side is the principal, who said girls wearing tuxes would violate the school's dress code.

On the other is gay student Claudetteia Love, a senior who has earned top honors at Carroll High School in Monroe, Louisiana. She believes the tux ban is a slam on her sexual orientation rather than her fashion choice.

She said she's decided not to attend the April 24 prom rather than be forced to dress in a way she doesn't want. She had expected to attend with a group of friends.

"I told my mom, 'They're using me. They put me in all these honors and advanced placement classes so I can take all of these tests and get good grades and better the school, but when it's time for me to celebrate the fact that I've accomplished what I need to accomplish and I'm about to graduate, they don't want to let me do it, the way I want to,'" Love told The News-Star.

Principal Patrick Taylor told The News-Star that his decision isn't personal and that the dress code applies to everyone.



However, Monroe City School Board President Rodney McFarland called it "discrimination."

"As far as I know there is no Monroe City School Board policy saying what someone has to wear to attend the prom. You can't just go making up policies," McFarland said.

Love's mother, Geraldine Jackson, said she was told that Taylor fears faculty would refuse to supervise the prom if girls wore tuxes.

"That's his exact words. 'Girls wear dresses and boys wear tuxes, and that's the way it is,'" she said.

McFarland said he would bring up the issue with Superintendent Brent Vidrine.

Love, who will represent the school at an event for the top students in Ouachita Parish, has a full scholarship to Jackson State University in Mississippi, The Associated Press reported.

NOLA.com has an unscientific poll asking readers their view on the issue.