Now here's a news story that I came across yesterday that made me very proud, made me want to stand up on my desk and shout "You go girl!," "Screw The Man!" and "Down with whitey!" Oh, wait, I'm white, scratch that last one
Alysha Cosby was a student at St. Jude Educational Institute, a Roman Catholic high school in Montgomery, Alabama. She had the misfortune or fortune (depending on how you look at it) to have gotten pregnant her senior year. She was told in March, 2005 that she could no longer attend because of "safety" reasons. I speculate, given that it is a Catholic school, that perhaps something other than safety was on their mind for their unmarried, pregnant, teenager student.
At any rate, this also meant that she was not to attend her graduation ceremony. Of course Alysha was not pleased with this one bit, especially since the father of her unborn child was allowed to walk with no problem whatsoever. Guess it's OK to father a child out of wedlock, just not be pregnant with one?
Decided that this was a colossal load of crap, Alysha did what any student in her situation should do: she walked anyway! Alysha decided that her graduation ban be damned, high school graduation is a once in a lifetime thing and she was gonna be up on that stage if it meant getting up there and shouting her name herself - which is what she did! Even though her guidance counselor was going to deliver her diploma at her home later, on Tuesday, May 17, 2005, at the close of the ceremony Alysha waltzed right up on stage, announced her own name, and walked across it. This prompted cheers and applause from many of her fellow students and members of the audience.
It wasn't all roses at the end, though. In an unbelievable turn of events, her mother and her aunt were escorted out of the church by police (now was that really necessary?) after Crosby returned to her seat.
"I can't believe something like this is happening in 2005," said Sheila Cosby, her mom. "My daughter has been through a lot and I am proud of her. She deserved to walk, and she did."
And the author of this write up wholeheartedly agrees. Godspeed, Alysha Cosby! And may the force be with you!
Sorry, this was written a day after Episode III premiered :)
Source:
http://www.cnn.com/2005/EDUCATION/05/19/pregnant.student.ap/index.html