Lesbian High School Student Banned from Yearbook
A high school senior in Wesson, Mississippi, has been banned from her high school yearbook because she wore a tuxedo in her photo. Ceara Sturgis was told by school officials that her attire in her yearbook photo was inappropriate for her gender. Sturgis said that she tried on the drape traditionally worn by girls but didn't like the way it looked. Instead, she chose to wear men's formal wear—just like her male classmates. "That's just who I am. I don't dress like a girl. I don't even own any girl clothes," said Sturgis. However, the issue in the Wesson school district seems to go deeper than mere wardrobe choice.
While investigating, an ABC affiliate news crew tried to interview school officials about the controversy. Principal Ronald Greer refused to comment publicly, and a representative from the local board of education released a simple statement saying that the matter does, in fact, go deeper than the tuxedo. Sturgis is a lesbian and has been out since the ninth grade. While no officials will say so directly, it seems that the real reason behind the ban is the girl's sexual orientation. In an interview, Sturgis pointed out that in previous yearbooks there have been photos of students engaging in cross-dressing at school-sanctioned events. She also notes that she paid for both the photos and the yearbook.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has decided to take on Sturgis's case. "You can't punish a woman for not being feminine enough or not wearing feminine clothes," said ACLU legal director Kristy Bennett, who will argue in court that the school district has violated the student's constitutional rights. "It is our position that they violated both federal statutes as well as the U.S. Constitution," adds Bennett. After the ACLU agreed to take on the case, school officials informed the girl's mother that the yearbook has already been sent out for printing—without her daughter's photograph. Bennett and the ACLU have a response for the school district: "We'll be asking for compensation for the cost of the pictures being taken as well as the emotional stress and mental anxiety they put her through by making her go through this process."
Once again, the inimitable Nina Simone comes to mind, specifically her famous song "Mississippi Goddamn."
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Comments
Good for her
I had something like this happen to me when I was 18, during my first job as a hairstylist. A new owner took over and told we had to wear uniforms. The women were supposed to wear these awful looking robes, while the men were allowed to wear suits. So the first day I showed up in a three-piece suit and fedora. My new boss was not impressed and I was soon fired for not following the rules. At the time I didn't care as I didn't want to work for idiots that made women dress one way and men another. I got a better job right away, in a shop that was avant garde where I could wear anything I wanted and I did!
If that isn't a
If that isn't a discrimination lawsuit waiting i dont know what is i remember we all wore ebony wigs big afros as a joke one day and everyone got in trouble, maybe we should have wore mullets instead.