A lesbian prom king and queen were selected in Kings High School in Kings Mill, Ohio, the first time an LGBTQ couple was selected in this district.
The lesbian couple, Annie Wise and Riley Loudermilk, both 18 years old, were voted as their prom’s king and queen last April 17 during the school event.
Winning the lesbian prom king and queen vote
Both teens said that overall, their school has been supportive of them being a couple– despite being located in a conservative area like Warren County.
“I didn’t think that we would’ve won because prom king and queen just seemed like a popularity thing,” Loudermilk said.
She added, “It was definitely so exciting to know we had so many people who had supported us,”
What’s more, because of their selection as prom king and queen, Wise said some students have told her that they were now more comfortable being gay at Kings High School.
Wise said, “There are some students that have told me that they’re comfortable being gay at Kings and they’re more comfortable with themselves now that they feel they have an accepting and supportive student body behind them.”
From couple to lesbian prom king and queen
Wise and Loudermilk had known each other since third grade. However, they had only been dating for six months.
They said they knew their friends at their Ohio senior class would be voting for them for the prom court. However, they didn’t think they had a chance.
Wise related that, “It took me forever to find this suit that I wore, because there’s like no tuxes for girls in all of Southwest Ohio.”
So when they were voted in, their friends were hugging them. Wise said: “It was so cool– it was like loud screaming, lots of tears.”
She added, “My crown fell off and it broke. There was a lot going on, but it’s something I’ll never forget. It was amazing.”
Negative reactions from other parents, adults
There have been negativity and criticism about the school body’s selection of the two, with some parents complaining at a school board meeting the following week.
However, the school stood by the decision. Dawn Goulding, a community relations coordinator for the school district, said: “”This is solely a Kings High School senior class nominated and voted-on initiative.”
Likewise, Wise’s mother, Jen Kirby, said: “Some people, you’re never going to change their mind. And you know what? That’s OK too. People are allowed to believe and feel what they believe and feel.”
Loudermilk told CNN that most of negativity both of them they’ve experienced were comments on the Kings Local School District’s Facebook post announcement that that they had won.
However, the couple said that these were comments were from adults they don’t know or who don’t live in their district. Loudermilk said, “It also just was kind of surprising that a bunch of adults were bashing teenagers.”