Peabody female student gets OK for male prom date in drag

PEABODY – Like most senior girls, Peabody Veterans Memorial High School student Deborah Lawson has been busy picking out a dress for the prom and securing a date for the big day.But the twist to Lawson’s fairy tale is that she wanted to bring a male friend to the dance – one who would like to wear a dress as well.PVMHS Principal Ed Sapie-nza reportedly balked at the notion and den-ied Lawson’s request.Ultimately, Lawson, 17, won the battle with the school to bring her friend to the dance when School Superintendent Milton Burnett gave her his OK shortly after Sapienza said no. The friend will wear one of Lawson’s own dresses.”The decision started and finished Wednesday, and my decision was simply based on legal issues,” Burnett said. “The student met the eligibility requirements for her guest. I looked at this from a legal point of view, not a judgment based on my values.”The vast majority of PVMHS students interviewed said they thought it was OK for Lawson’s date to wear whatever he wanted and even thought it was a cool idea.A few others, however, said they might do a double take if they saw a young man at the dance wearing a dress with hairy legs.”If I saw him walking around in a dress, I might be taken aback by it at first, and think that it’s kind of weird,” Cassie Trombley, a junior at PVMHS said. “But if a girl wanted to wear a suit or a tux to the prom, I think that would be alright, so I’m OK with him wearing a dress.”Trombley said the prom dress was the hot topic of the day at school Thursday, and even her history class devoted some time to the issue.Kasey Murphy, a sophomore and friend of Lawson’s, said Deborah met her date at a gay pride youth event in Boston and quickly bonded.”They became really close and she wanted to take him to the prom,” she said. “But the principal said no because it’s against school policy. I really think that’s ridiculous though because it’s not like it would be harming anyone if he wore a dress.”Murphy said she would prefer the school be more open to students’ wishes, but on the other hand, said the student could face harassment.”People should be able to express themselves,” she said. “But it’s probably a concern for the date because I think he will get picked on. I think that’s weird, but it will happen.”Jeff Belleau, a freshman at PVMHS agreed with Murphy’s comments and said other male students would most likely make fun of Lawson’s date at the prom on June 5 at the Boston Park Plaza.”It’s fine and it’s totally cool, and I wouldn’t say anything to him, but the other guys probably will,” he said.Raising an eyebrow over the issue, Jareem Brogden, a sophomore, ultimately said he wouldn’t mind sharing the same dance floor with a man in a dress.”I might be a little uncomfortable if he asked me to dance (while wearing a dress), but if you want to wear a dress, then where a dress,” he said. “If that’s how he is, then that’s how he is.”Calls placed to Sapienza were not immediately returned.