(Lebanon, Indiana) An Indiana student is suing her high school after she was told she could not wear a tuxedo to the school’s prom.

Court papers identify her only as a senior at the school and describes her as a lesbian who chooses not to wear dresses because she believes they represent a sexual identity.

The lawsuit alleges the girl was told by her principal that while the school’s dress code does not contain gender-based requirements, there is a special dress code for the prom. That code requires female students to wear a formal dress, the suit charges.

The ACLU, in the court filing, said that the dress code discriminates against students based on gender. It further states that because the school receives federal funds, the policy also violates federal anti-discrimination law and that it also violates her constitutional right to free speech.

The lawsuit asks the court to issue an injunction requiring the school to let the girl wear the same formal attire to the prom as male students.

The Lebanon Community school district called the suit premature.

The district’s attorney, Kent Frandsen, told the Associated Press that the final decision on prom attire was not up to the principal and no final decision had been made.

Frandsen said the school was still trying to work out a deal with the girl that would allow her to wear a pantsuit if that made her more comfortable. He also said there are about six weeks until the prom and there was still time to reach an agreement without going to court.

Another lawsuit in Indiana, brought last year by a gay male who was barred from going to his prom wearing a dress, is pending in court.

In December 2007, Lambda Legal filed a lawsuit on behalf of K.K. Logan challenging a Gary School Corporation policy barring clothing that advertises sexual orientation or indicates that a student’s gender is different from the student’s sex.

Logan argues that the policy violates students’ First Amendment freedom of expression.  Logan also claims that his exclusion from prom constitutes discrimination on the basis of gender.  West Side High School filed a motion to dismiss the case in February 2008 leading to this week’s ruling. 

Students and teachers knew that K.K. Logan was gay for years.  During his senior year, Logan attended West Side High expressing a deeply rooted femininity in his appearance and demeanor. At school, Logan wore makeup, accessories and clothing typically associated with girls his age.

However, on May 19, 2006, Principal Diane Rouse stretched her arms across the door of the senior prom, blocking Logan’s entrance because Logan was wearing a dress. Classmates and friends rallied to Logan’s defense to no avail—even though a female student was allowed to attend dressed in a tuxedo.

Principal Rouse enforced a Gary School Corporation policy that forbids any clothing or accessories that “advertise sexual orientation” or “portray the wearer as a person of the opposite gender.”