A city of 4,400 people, Ashburn, Georgia has a Fire Ant Festival, a Crime and Punishment Museum and now – almost 52 years after Brown vs. The Board of Education – they also have had their first racially integrated high school prom.
It was a landmark evening April 21st because for the first time in this sleepy town the penguin suits weren’t the only black and white in the room. Until this year, parents in the community organized separate proms for students and a school sponsored prom did not exist. It is the stuff of corny teenage love stories, bad 80′s movies, and gaudy teen magazines but this was a high school without a prom – Hmm. By not hosting an official dance all of these years and allowing the community to continue the practice of racially segregating the crowning moment of a high school student’s life the school’s administration was teaching their students a lesson of bigotry and cowardice. It wasn’t their actions that were deplorable; it was their lack of action.
How could something like this happen in a public institution of learning, in today’s world? With all of the laws governing what is proper to teach children and the consequences for not teaching it, as exampled by No Child Left Behind, how could a lesson like this be taught to children for so many years?
In a so many towns across America the school is an institution that stands at the center of a community, hosting football rivalries, bake sales, and parents clubs. The center of Ashburn’s community promoted bigotry and hate for years and no one noticed or took action until the class of 2007 stood up and said something. Yes, it was an extra-curricular activity but one that is such an integral part of the school experience. How many people would have stood while a school did not have an official football team because they needed to racially segregate the players?
Congratulations Turner County High School’s Class of 2007 for standing up and stopping this gross injustice and shame on the Turner County High School administration for instilling those values in every class that preceded them. It is the very ideas that you taught these students that created a platform for Don Imus, assorted slur thowers, and other radio hosts who feel it is okay to broadcast racially charged prank calls.
Tell the administration what you think:
Turner County High School
316 Lamar St., Ashburn, GA 31714
(229) 567-4377
Mel, you really need to update your site. I’ve been waiting for a good dialogue to get going. Give me a holler! Congrats on the new job. Stay in touch.
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