A lesbian student at a school in Mississippi wanted to take her girlfriend to the prom. So the school cancelled it

If all those John Hughes movies are to be believed, the senior prom is a highlight of American teenage life. But in a real-life scenario that would have made for a great John Hughes plot, a cowardly school in Mississippi has cancelled its senior prom this year after a female student wanted to bring her girlfriend as her date.

Constance McMillen, an 18-year-old student at Itawamba Agricultural High School in Fulton, Mississippi, asked to be able to take her date. The school's board objected – and to McMillen wanting to wear a tuxedo – so the American Civil Liberties Union got involved, pointing out the discrimination issue.

How did the school react? By blaming "distractions to the educational process caused by recent events" and cancelling the prom for everyone – which left the rest of the students unhappy. The local Clarion-Ledger newspaper, under the sparkling headline "Mississippi lesbian alleges retaliation after prom date debate", reported McMillen's reaction to the news that the prom had been scrapped:

"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. A bunch of kids at school are really going to hate me for this, so in a way it's really retaliation."





The ACLU this afternoon filed a lawsuit against the school district:

She was told, according to the lawsuit, that the pair would have to arrive separately and could be thrown out "if any of the other students complained about their presence there together." McMillen was also told she could not wear a tuxedo, according to the suit, because boys are to attend in tuxedos and girls in dresses.

Announcing the cancellation, the school board said: "It is our hope that private citizens will organize an event for the juniors and seniors." A private party would circumvent the legal issues.

The gay-prom-goer issue has arisen in many states in recent years. In conservative Utah, gay students in Salt Lake City can attend a separate prom, sponsored by the Utah Pride Centre. In more liberal California – despite Prop 8 – students at Fairfax Senior High School in Los Angeles elected gay student Sergio Garcia as prom queen in 2009.

A Facebook group, Let Constance Take Her Girlfriend to Prom!, has been started and already has 11,000 fans.