A Roman Catholic school in Michigan has
rescinded its invitation to a graduation speaker after finding out he
is gay.
Dominic Sheahan-Stahl told The
Huffington Post that the Sacred Heart Academy invited him to
give the keynote address at the high school's May 20 graduation, at
which his youngest brother will be graduating. Sheahan-Stahl, who
graduated from the school in 1998, said the school's principal, Denny
Starnes, informed his mother that he would not be allowed to speak at
graduation because he's gay.
Starnes learned about about
Sheahan-Stahl's sexual orientation from a Facebook post announcing
his engagement to his partner Nathan.
“My mother kept asking why and what
does his sexual orientation have to do with giving a graduation
speech,” he said. “She cried and didn't sleep at all that night.
My poor brother, whose graduation it is, couldn't even be in the
room when my mom had to tell me. Even my sister cried herself to
sleep that night.”
“My mom has always taught us to love
unconditionally,” Sheahan-Stahl added. “I am lucky that at 32
this is the first time I've truly been discriminated against, but
some kids go through this day in and day out. I want those kids to
know that they are loved and that the world needs what they have to
give.”
In a video posted online, Sheahan-Stahl
called the incident “shocking.” (The video is embedded in the
right panel of this page. Visit
our video library for more videos.)
A Facebook page titled Let
Dominic Speak has attracted more than 4,300 fans in less than
one day.