A Maryland high school student government association has abandoned the traditional monarchy without the consent of the governed.
On September 23, the SGA officers of Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School voted on a proposition to make its homecoming court policy more … “inclusive.” The SGA felt that having a “king” and a “queen” was too restrictive and gender-normative; thus, the group voted 4 to 1 to make the court gender-neutral. Yet, apparently, the student population was not asked to weigh in on the decision.
As Cosmo writer Tess Koman wrote, “Those who win the title will be asked if they’d like to be introduced as king, queen, or royalty before being announced at halftime.” The “royalty” could be two shes, two hes or two theys.
The change “provides an opportunity for all students to be involved in something that was exclusionary,” SGA president Jacob Rains told The Washington Post. “It is really not our job, especially with a gender-neutral and transgender population at B-CC, to tell people that boys have to be kings and girls have to be queens. Who are we to put people into those categories?”
Principal Donna Jones was extremely supportive of the SGA’s decision. “What student leaders are doing is a step to help ensure that all students have a sense of belonging at B-CC,” she stated approvingly.
Nadia Gaylin, a senior at B-CC, was similarly pleased with the change. “It’s so important for kids to see the school is accepting and that we recognize they exist,” she told the Post. “That is so huge and can honestly change lives.”
In her coverage of the news, Teen Vogue writer Neha Prakash couldn’t disguise her delight, writing: “All hail Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School.”
But reactions were not all positive. Some students felt that the SGA had not considered their views, and directly reached out to Rains to express their discontent. Commenting on an Instagram announcement, one disgruntled student wrote: “Wow, this really makes sense? Really disappointed that students couldn’t vote on this or something.”
In response to the complaints he received, Rains tweeted: “Many at B-CC feel like all decisions are made without their input and that changes are being made that hurt them more than they help.” A following tweet declared: “We hope to directly counter that notion by making SGA more transparent than it has ever been before and opening up our policy making process.”
One wonders whether a student outcry would have changed the decision. Probably not.
