The worst part of marching for high school graduation for me was the anxiety of who you would be matched with for the procession. My high school did it by height and gender. Start off with the shortest students, boys on the left in green and girls on the right in white. It never crossed my mind that what color robe / gown you received would matter. What if you were a transgender student? Color would mean everything. Should there be a new color proposed? Should we consult birth certificates and decide based on legal documentation?
Traditionally, boys at Kennett High School in North Conway wear black caps and gowns and girls wear white ones for graduation. WMUR-TV reports that two weeks ago, members of the Gay- Straight-Transgender Alliance asked the board to change that after transgender students were assigned robes for the gender they don’t identify with. The school board decided Wednesday night to let each person decide if they want to wear black or white. – LGBTQNATION.COM
Sometimes the simplest of problems has the simplest of answers. What color gown should transgender students wear? Let them decide. Heck, let all the students decide. Bravo school board. Congrats on solving a simple problem with an easy solution.
And it was a serious problem. Great credit should be given to the community for they realized that something as simple as a color stands for so much and means so much to some of us. I cannot imagine being a transgender teenager, but to see the understanding of this community and letting color be a choice for all … it makes me proud. I miss being a teacher, especially when students stand up for each other and prevail. Can I say bravo again?
Now about that marching by height thing …