Let's Throw Constance McMillen the Prom She Deserves

I never thought an 18-year-old lesbian in Fulton, Miss., would prompt me to write my first article for Tonic, but I guess life really is full of surprises. Here's the scoop. I'm sure you've heard about Constance McMillen over the past few days. She is a senior at Itawamba County Agricultural High School in Fulton — a town tucked away in the northeast corner of Mississippi, covering a grand total of 8.9 square miles and home to around 4,000 people (83-percent White, 15-percent African-American and 2-percent "other"). Constance wanted to dress up in a tux and bring her sophomore girlfriend to the prom. Umm. Forget it. The school canceled the prom and the Mayor, Paul Walker, said, "I think the community as a whole is probably in support of the school district." At least that's what Wikipedia's entry for Fulton, Miss., claims, so it must be true. A few things on this. First, do you remember being 18? It's scary enough thinking about school, college, life, sex, drugs, parents and everything else that stresses kids out. This angel, Constance, is dealing with all that and decided to fight for what she believes in on a very public, national stage. If nothing else, Constance is a reminder of courage, love and determination wrapped up in a human spirit that hopefully will set an example for others in similar situations. Second, what the hell is going on with this world? Or this town? The median income for the city is barely over $15,000. Almost 10 percent of the families and 17 percent of the population are below the poverty line, including 21 percent of people under the age of 21. If you're the mayor, wouldn't you be thinking about how to rally a community around improving schools, creating jobs or better social services? All you can do is ostracize a lesbian in high school to show that you're listening to public opinion? Town needs a new mayor. And finally, if you're the superintendent, Theresa McNeese, this has to be a moment of irony. On the county's website she posted this: "My personal motto of 'Expect More, Do More and Achieve More' is what I want each individual associated with our district to adopt." Unless you're gay, I guess. In full Tonic spirit, let's learn something and try to make something positive out of this. Last night, a friend of mine (he wants to remain anonymous) sent me a link to a CNN article on Constance and, expectedly, was appalled at the situation. It was a punch-in-the-face lesson of how we should all think about how to help. An important person in my life, with plenty of other commitments, saw this story and decided to DO something instead of complain about it. I was sitting around stewing about this but had no plan. We've written a couple of stories on this at Tonic, but I didn't have any ideas on how to help. This friend, thankfully, is not a complainer and he's a lot smarter than I am. He wants to fund the prom. In fact, he's going to match, dollar for dollar, the first $25,000 we raise for the prom. Anything not spent will go to fund a scholarship. Spread the word. Let's throw Constance and all the cool kids in Fulton a party they'll never forget. If you're willing to help, send a non-tax-deductible donation to this Paypal Account and we'll sort it out. **UPDATE: We have contacted the folks at MSSC, who have taken the lead on organizing a prom, to let them know we are happy to support their efforts. Our anonymous donor, because of his privacy concerns and familiarity with Tonic, requested that we collect the funds, and after receiving the proper documentation from MSSC, release the funds to that group. We will post the images of the money we send as an update to this article so you can see exactly how the funds were distributed. Thanks again for all of your support! Pankaj UPDATE: Tonic is now longer taking donations for this campaign. Thank you for your support! Want to learn more? Read Constance McMillen's profile on Tonic and watch her appearance on today's The Ellen DeGeneres Show below.