Buddha Posted May 1, 2003 Share Posted May 1, 2003 ...I thought we were beyond this sh!t. Georgia Students Plan Whites-Only Prom Thursday, May 01, 2003 ALBANY, Ga. — A year after holding their first integrated prom, some students at Taylor County High School (search) have decided to again hold a separate, private party for whites only. While many whites say they still plan to attend next week's integrated prom, the decision to hold the whites-only prom this Friday saddened senior Gerica McCrary, who helped organize last year's dance. "I cried," said McCrary, who is black. "The black juniors said, 'Our prom is open to everyone. If you want to come, come."' Juniors are in charge of planning the prom each year and last year they decided to have just one dance — the first integrated prom in 31 years in the rural Georgia county 150 miles south of Atlanta. Until then, parents and students organized separate proms for whites and blacks after school officials stopped sponsoring dances, in part because they wanted to avoid problems arising from interracial dating. This year, a small number of white juniors decided they wanted a separate prom. "They influenced the others," said McCrary, who plans to major in biology at Columbus State University. "They didn't vote on anything. They said, 'This is what we're going to do."' The school has 439 students, 232 of them black. McCrary and a white friend passed out fliers informing students of all races that they would be welcome at the May 9 prom at nearby Fort Valley State University. The private prom is Friday night 50 miles away in Columbus. Erin Posey, a white senior, said the entire junior class joined together in hosting last year's prom, but this year's junior class wasn't as unified. "I think a lot of seniors were disappointed," she said. "Now we have to choose between two groups of friends." Posey plans to attend both proms. "I had some white friends who were not going to the other (inclusive) prom," she said. "I wanted to have time with everybody. I'll have a lot of (black) friends there, too. A lot more of the seniors are going to be at the mixed one." After school integration, separate proms were common in the rural South, but Taylor County was among the last to cling to the practice. Glenda Latimore, a 1972 graduate, was in the first class to have separate black and white proms. Now her 16-year-old son, Gerard, is preparing for prom night. As the black junior class president, her son helped organize the open-to-all prom. The class also has a white president. "I would have liked to see it together this year," said Latimore, an outfielder on the school's baseball team. "My class would have, too. It just didn't happen this year." Glenda Latimore said relatives in Philadelphia and New Jersey laugh when they read about Taylor County's prom. She said residents here are "nice and friendly," but they still have a problem with proms. "It seems like it's something secret," she said. "The white people are afraid to speak up against the separation. "But I went to a black prom and I had fun," she said. "It didn't kill me, so I tell my son, 'Just go to the prom and have fun. Don't come out hating anyone."' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burgold Posted May 1, 2003 Share Posted May 1, 2003 That really rots. I wonder if it's legal. Did you get the sense whether the high school in question was public or private. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dchogs Posted May 1, 2003 Share Posted May 1, 2003 whoa... that town must me stuck in some kind of time warp/worm hole that keeps them in the 1950's. unbelieveable that this $hit can still exist in the ol' USA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Golgo-13 Posted May 1, 2003 Share Posted May 1, 2003 :doh: :doh: :doh: Sounds like these people need to organize a dance for the admissions board at University of Michigan law. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimboDaMan Posted May 1, 2003 Share Posted May 1, 2003 Its a private prom. I'm disgusted with the administration and parents, not to mention the students, but I don't know what you could do to stop it if the townspeople aren't inclined to. But... As the black junior class president, her son helped organize the open-to-all prom. The class also has a white president. What???? Is that for real, the school has separate white and black student presidents?? Now, how in the he!! can THAT be legal??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henry Posted May 1, 2003 Share Posted May 1, 2003 Originally posted by Burgold That really rots. I wonder if it's legal. Did you get the sense whether the high school in question was public or private. Of course it's legal. The 'white' prom is not school sponsored. It's a private function and they can invite whoever they want, just like Augusta National. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luckydevil Posted May 1, 2003 Share Posted May 1, 2003 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drex Posted May 1, 2003 Share Posted May 1, 2003 Truly sickening that such an act can take place in the year 2003. :doh: :doh: :doh: :doh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henry Posted May 1, 2003 Share Posted May 1, 2003 Originally posted by JimboDaMan What???? Is that for real, the school has separate white and black student presidents?? Now, how in the he!! can THAT be legal??? That was my reaction too, Jimbo. Can you imagine putting "White Student President" on your college application? :doh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Evil Genius Posted May 1, 2003 Share Posted May 1, 2003 Originally posted by Henry That was my reaction too, Jimbo. Can you imagine putting "White Student President" on your college application? :doh: Yeah if I wanted to attend Bob Jones University Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Invisible Poster Posted May 1, 2003 Share Posted May 1, 2003 Originally posted by luckydevi Well said luckdevi. This really put a bad taste in my mouth :puke:, I thought we were past this :doh:. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckeyeG Posted May 1, 2003 Share Posted May 1, 2003 I blame the parents.:puke: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doggmatic Posted May 1, 2003 Share Posted May 1, 2003 I've heard rumours about the deep south still harboring this type of attitude. Quite frankly, I just don't get it. Maybe because I have friends of multiple races. Maybe because I think Asian women are hot. Maybe because people are just people, no matter the skin color. I would like to know the average education attained in this area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tarhog Posted May 1, 2003 Share Posted May 1, 2003 One would hope that this is just a couple of idiot parents with an agenda, dragging their kids along for the sick ride. ANYTHING that drives people away from one another based on race is a bad bad thing. I doubt seriously this is very indicative of the South 'deep' or otherwise, no more than the worst 1% is indicative of other parts of the country. Pretty sad though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gridironmike Posted May 2, 2003 Share Posted May 2, 2003 OK here we go. Before I post anything else, I am a white male, born in Florida, raised in West Virginia. First of all, I was shocked, suprised, whatever to find out a segregated prom existed. Second, if that is what they want to do, who cares? It is like Augusta. Augusta doesn't want women and they are a private club, not public. There is an integrated prom that everyone is invited too, and it is still private (or seperate from the school). There is also a segregated prom that is also private. Private and public are two different things. I know race is a touchy issue, but free people have a right to privacy. If I want to watch NFL games with only Redskins fans, I don't have to invite or include anyone else. It sounds to me like some of those kids realize that skin color doesn't matter to them and they are going to both. Good for them. No, great! But we still have to respect a person's privacy. The school could help to solve the matter and have a "public" prom. It sounds to me like they are hiding behind some of the white students (I am at a loss for words) either racism or right to privacy. In other words, I guess it would be a bigger deal if someone said "we are having a white-only prom and thats it." There are two proms and we have freedom of choice. Alright, you can butcher me now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Utah Posted May 2, 2003 Share Posted May 2, 2003 All I want to do, is meet the people who encourged this behavior. :twitch: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phishhead Posted May 2, 2003 Share Posted May 2, 2003 F*ck racism. I'm curious though, what if it were the black students, who wanted a seperate prom. Do you think it would be a big as deal? Do you think it would get more, or less attention? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Golgo-13 Posted May 2, 2003 Share Posted May 2, 2003 What???? Is that for real, the school has separate white and black student presidents?? Now, how in the he!! can THAT be legal??? [/b] They way I read it is that the Black girl is JUNIOR class president, the white kid is SCHOOL president. Two different positions that are common in most schools, public or private. To answer your question phishhead, I think that it wouldn't raise as much a stink if the black students had done it. When whites discriminate against blacks it usually gets a lot more attention from the media than the opposite. Not to excuse either type of behavior because they both SUCK!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poidog22 Posted May 2, 2003 Share Posted May 2, 2003 It still amazes me that people can still be so close-minded. It's just so wrong, I can't even express my disgust.:doh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackC Posted May 2, 2003 Share Posted May 2, 2003 If only we'd elected Strom Thurmond in '48! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimboDaMan Posted May 2, 2003 Share Posted May 2, 2003 escholz, take another look. It specifically states the CLASS also has a white president, not the SCHOOL. Not that inept journalism would surprise me, but going by what's in the story its clear the junior class has 2 presidents according to race. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kilmer17 Posted May 2, 2003 Share Posted May 2, 2003 It's disgusting. But on both sides. Just as I am sickened by "black student associations" and "gay proms". I am disgusted by the notion that white kids feel the need to be exclusionary based on race and moreso that their parents are allowing it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackC Posted May 2, 2003 Share Posted May 2, 2003 Kilmer, It would be a better preparation for life if it was based on how much money their parents have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kilmer17 Posted May 2, 2003 Share Posted May 2, 2003 Jack, I can tell your in a confrontational mood today. And I'll be your huckleberry. But what the hell did that mean? Who are you taking a shot at? Those white kids are probably just as poor as the black kids. It's rural GA. Their median income is probably less than you make in a month. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackC Posted May 2, 2003 Share Posted May 2, 2003 Confrontational? Me? My point is the most important color in life will not be black or white. It will surely be green. If what you say about them both being poor is true, it makes no sense for them to be a divided group. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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