SCAD prides itself on maintaining a diverse student body. In 2011, 41 percent of incoming freshmen were minorities from around the globe. In the midst of such ethnic variety, it’s hard to imagine that less than 200 miles away, students at a Georgia high school had to push to hold their first racially integrated prom.
For nearly four decades, parents of students at Wilcox County High School organized two separate, private proms — one for white students and one for black students.
The excuse? Local defenders of the segregated events — mostly older generations — claim that segregation made sense due to differences in musical preferences, as well as the value of continuing traditions.
“Some traditions are OK,” said Mac Calabria, a fourth-year SCAD student. “But any tradition that allows for discrimination should not be happening. I can’t help but think of the generations in my country who haven’t lived outside of the socialist/communist regime, and they think that’s OK when clearly it’s not.”
Calabria, who identifies as a gay latino born in Venezuela to European parents — one from Spain and one from Italy — compared the segregated proms with prejudiced trends and beliefs in his own country that parents pass down to their children.
Despite the longevity of the two-prom tradition, four female students, two black and two white, decided to raise money in order to organize an integrated event. Their Facebook page alone aggregated more than 28,000 fans, and according to one of the organizers of the prom, Keela Bloodworth, students were able to raise more than $40,000.
“Prom was absolutely amazing,” Bloodworth said. “We couldn’t have asked for a better outcome.” Bloodworth added that she hopes the money can go toward organizing future proms.
The school’s superintendent, Steven Smith, is quoted as saying, “It became an embarrassment long ago,” in reference to the separated proms. Smith declined to comment for this article due to receiving “hundreds of emails” and phone calls and refers anyone with questions to the high school’s website.
Though no homosexual couples attended the Wilcox County prom, there were two biracial couples.
When considering this recent push against racial divide, Calabria is glad to attend such a diverse university.
“I feel like I can actually be myself here,” he said. “I’m able to have a diverse group of friends and don’t really have to worry about people judging me.”
Wilcox County High School plans to organize a prom in 2014 — this time, affiliated with the school itself — that will be open to all students.
