Not Your Normal Prom King: Transgender Student Running for Prom King

The first recorded transgender homecoming king candidate is at Fresno High School in California. This 17 year old female is making gay youth advocates very happy.

Cinthia Covarrubias isn't your everyday student. She is a transgender female who sometimes goes by the name Tony. She dresses as a man and acts like a man most of the time. In fact, her outward appearance would have most people pegging her as a man. When asked why she identifies herself as a man, she responded, "My freshman year I just started feeling different. When I decided to change to be like this, all of a sudden I said, 'Wow, I feel OK. I feel like finally I'm being me.'"

A 2000 law makes it possible for her to run as a king despite the fact that she is a woman. This law requires that all schools protect students all kinds of gender discrimination. This includes sexuality and "gender expression". At first

Gay rights groups are praising this decision. They think it is a step in the right direction for gender and sexual equality. The director of the Gay- Straight Alliance Network, Carolyn Laub, was excited about the schools action.

"It's really important for an individual student like Cinthia to be able to feel she has the same access to participate in this rite of passage. We are growing as a society to accept much more diversity in gender expression, and that's a positive thing."

While a lot of gay rights groups are praising this, a lot of people are upset with the decision. A student from the school, Erich Logan, said, "I like lesbians, but they shouldn't be allowed to run for king."

A lot of the debate focuses on why she should be allowed to run as king. The gay rights activists would say that peoples ignorance regarding homosexuality and gender expressions is the only reason she wasn't initially allowed to run. The people on the street say she does not have male anatomy and therefore cannot be a male.

Covarrubias feels like she is part of something bigger. "I'm happy I actually made a difference about changing the law and the policy so you can run for your choice."

She is taking a close female friend. Her date plans on wearing a black dress with a red corsage. When Covarrubias was asked if she will wear a dress, she repiled, "I would never have run for anything if I had to wear a dress."

Sources: AP, My Way News

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20070421/D8OKLKP01.html