An openly gay teen in Missouri has
prevailed in his quest to attend prom with his boyfriend.
Stacy Dawson, 17, who attends Scott
County Central High School in Sikeston was told last year that he
would not be allowed to bring his boyfriend to prom.
Administrators pointed to the school's
handbook, which mandates the gender of a student's guest: “[H]igh
school students will be permitted to invite one guest, girls invite
boys and boys invite girls.”
“Prom is an important milestone in
high school, and I would be devastated if I'm not allowed to attend
prom with my boyfriend,” Dawson said. “It isn't fair that a
school can randomly disregard students' rights because it doesn't
agree with who you want to take to prom.”
On Thursday, Valentine's Day, the
Southern
Poverty Law Center (SPLC) urged the school to reconsider its
policy or face legal action.
“Denying Stacy's right to bring his
boyfriend to prom is blatantly discriminatory and in violation of his
constitutional rights,” said Alesdair Ittelson, staff attorney for
the SPLC. “This unlawful policy reminds us that anti-gay sentiment
still serves as a platform for schools to deny the rights of same-sex
couples. We call upon the school district to end this
unconstitutional policy and recognize Stacy's rights without further
delay.”
On Friday, NBC
News reported that administrators had reversed course.
“It was never intended to be a
discriminatory thing,” said Alvin McFerren, Scott County Central
School District superintendent. “We want an educational
environment for all of our kids and we're not ever going to
discriminate as to whether or not the board has the policy and we
don't do that based on sexual orientation. Period.”
“I automatically told my boyfriend,”
Dawson said. “He was just as happy as I was.”
Dawson added that his classmates “have
been really supportive.”