Girl Wearing Confederate Flag Evening Gown Barred from Attending High School Prom

To whom this may concern,

My name is Jacqueline Duty and I'm a senior at Russell High School in Russell, Kentucky.  Over the weekend I was told that I wouldn't be able to wear a dress that my parents and I had planned on making and saving for since my freshman year.

I designed and had made a Confederate Flag Dress to show a piece of my heritage and to show what I stood for.  When I showed up at the prom I was turned away and told that I could/would be suspended and that they would keep me from graduating if I did not leave the school. My whole family and community are outraged.

For one, I was only told the day before my prom that I couldn't wear my dress after all that time, work, effort, and pride we had put into that dress. The school spoke to my mother and I as if we were stupid and with no respect. You wouldn't believe how they acted. When the principle told my boyfriend and I to leave he, I'm guessing, wanted to show his anger and smacked the hood of my boyfriend's mom's car. They acted out in the wrong way trying to use force when we weren't even putting up a fight.

I wasn't there to cause problems I was going to do as I was told so that way what they did was all on them and none of this could come back on me. I was so embarrassed by all of this because they wouldn't even let us out of our automobile and yelled and screamed all of these things at my date and myself in front of a large crowd who were mostly there to see me and support what I was standing up for.

So after all this I ended up spending my senior prom on the side walk in front of my school and danced my first and last dance of my senior year there.

Two local news stations have covered my story and I'm just trying to get my story out. I just wanted to let you know what happened and how I was treated.

The sad part of this is people at my school wear Confederate flag shirts and hats everyday to school and there isn't a word said to them. There isn’t anything in the rulebooks that say anything about wearing them or no specific dress code for prom that says anything except it must be formal attire. I feel as if my 1st amendment right has been taken from me. People wear crosses, the Star of David, and various items that represent a part of them and where they come from but once I tried to do that in a way like not many others have I was turned away and treated in a horrible manner. The school that I attend showed absolutely no respect for my rights they only went on what they had heard and acted on the rights of others who could have possibly been offended not even thinking about the things that go on and are worn that may offend others.

As I told the school Friday when they told me I couldn’t wear my dress because it would be offensive and disruptive, there are many things that offend me but I keep my mouth shut because everyone has rights. Girls who wear dresses that leave nothing to the imagination offend me; because it shows that they have no self-respect or respect for those around them. Because I stood up for something I believe in I had to miss my senior prom a once in a lifetime event that I can never get back and it hurts.

Today had to have been the worst day of all because I had to hear all the stories about how wonderful everyone looked and how much fun they had dancing the night away with their dates and close friends, and I didn’t even have the chance to be a part of that all. Thank you for your time I have attached a picture of my dress for reference.

Jacqueline Duty