Man arrested over threats to high school after gender-fluid students crowned prom king and queen
Two LGBTQ+ students were crowned prom King and Queen at a Ohio highschool. (Instagram/@Lovedaisean/WDTN TV)
A man has been arrested for allegedly threatening to harm LGBTQ+ students after an Ohio high school’s prom saw two queer students become prom king and queen.
Kettering Fairmont High School received a phone call on 2 May from a man threatening to harm students who identify as LGBTQ+. School officials, who said the threat was broad and not aimed at specific individuals, informed authorities and police officers were sent to protect the school.
A spokesperson for the Kettering City School Board of Education said the police were able to determine immediately the area from where the call had come and asked the school to stick to a normal routine so as not to arouse suspicion as their investigation continued, according to WDTN.
Brandon Moore, 42, who was arrested the following day, has been charged with telecommunications and disturbing the peace violations.
The call was sparked by Dai’sean Conley and Rosie Green, who both identify as non-binary, being elected prom king and queen by fellow pupils on 22 April.
Prom queen Conley told WDTN that event though there were “boos in the crowd” as the crown was placed on their head , they “only heard the congratulating, which I was very thankful for.”
Conley expressed sadness and said that it was exciting to win, it was also hard to face the negative feedback.
“It’s very demeaning. It takes a lot for an individual to be able to bring themself back to who they are and believing in themselves and being fully confident and not letting things like that pull them out of who they are as a person” they said.
Conley shared a series of photos from the event and captioned it: “The LGBTQ+ really took over.”
Following the historic moment, the high school held a board meeting to debate whether they would keep their crowns following an intense backlash.
The school board decided not to overturn the result as the pair had been voted for by their fellow students.
Kettering City Schools District released a statement to WDTN, saying: “This is a student-led process that is overseen by Fairmont’s United Student Body (USB), class council and administration. This is the same process that has been followed for many years.
“At this time, there are no plans on the part of district or school administration to change this process in any way. If the student organisations are interested in changing the process, we will assist them in evaluating and determining any future changes and will continue to respect this to be a student-led initiative.”
Last month, a non-binary student in Nashville, Tennessee, was banned from their prom after their high school told them they had wear a dress, not a suit, to the event.
