Students at Lexington High School in Massachusetts will be able to hold an "American Pride" dance despite objections from school administrators over what they viewed as an exclusionary theme. "We’re supporting that student decision," Lexington High School Principal Laura Lasa told Fox News. "We’re going forward with supporting their theme of American Pride."
"We’re being mindful of the fact that we want kids to have pride in America, and also the fact we have students from all over the world that move to Lexington."
It was originally reported the administration had canceled the dance after the "American Pride" theme had received the most votes from the school's dance committee. Administrators feared the theme would exclude students of other nationalities. "Given the diverse demography of our community it was suggested by the advisers that the students come maybe national pride theme so they could represent their individual nationalities," Lexington Assistant Superintendent Carol Pilarski told WHDH on March 20.
Some students were upset with the decision. One student, Sneha Rao, told WHDH "People consider America to be a melting pot, so the fact that it was even considered offensive is what people are a little surprised about."
However, administrators now say the dance was never canceled and the situation was merely a misunderstanding. "We were in a conversation with the kids about how the theme would be presented so that we could make sure that it was inclusive to all students, they took that as being told they could not," Lasa told Fox News.
The "American Pride" dance is scheduled to take place toward the end of April.