Education

Here.

JACKSON, Miss. – A northern Mississippi school district will not be hosting a high school prom this spring after a lesbian student sought to attend with her girlfriend and wear a tuxedo.

The Itawamba County school district's board decided Wednesday to drop the prom because of what it called recent distractions but without specifically mentioning the girl's request, which was backed by the American Civil Liberties Union.

..."It is our hope that private citizens will organize an event for the juniors and seniors," district officials said in the statement. "However, at this time, we feel that it is in the best interest of the Itawamba County School District, after taking into consideration the education, safety and well being of our students."

Proms are not educational (at least not academically) and therefore the school needn't hold one. Canceling the prom allows private organizations to host the event which is as it should be.

These kind of cultural events exist to promote an idea. As the ACLU has asserted in the past, when the government supports something, it renders onto that thing official approval. When there is controversy, the state might be better off not taking a side. What if an anti-romance person sues the school over promoting romance?

These events are cultural relics of a time when people agreed more or less on these issues. It's time for them to go.