It’s June. Malls are bustling with gaggles of teenage girls in hunt of their dream prom dress, the perfect shade of Maybelline purple shadow and Chanel-pink lip gloss. The sight brings you back to the day you graduated. Perhaps it was memorable, or maybe, like for Constance McMillen, prom was a sham.
McMillen petitioned the Itawamba County School District to bring her same-sex girlfriend to prom and to wear a tuxedo, but was denied. The school cancelled prom, and courts decided against ruling for the school to reinstate it, so the community organized a prom dance at a country club which McMillen, her date, and only a handful of friends attended.  Meanwhile the majority of students from her school went to another dance at a community centre.
McMillen transferred to a different school in Jackson, Mississippi from which she will graduate June 2nd, and on June 12th the Miscellaneous Youth Network will host the first-ever Queer Prom in Calgary, inspired by her story: a chance for the queer community to attend a graduation dance any way they want, with no supervision and no fear of judgment.
The fundraising prom will go down at the Hillhurst-Sunnyside Community Association starting at 8pm. Tickets are available at Dick & Janes for $10 in advance or $15 at the door, and there will be a cash bar. Prizes will go out to the tackiest couple and tackiest single, courtesy of Deva Dave’s, and a variety of raffle prizes will be drawn.
A photographer will be on site to capture those special moments as they unfold. 
“We’re very excited about this,” says Jen Jeans, board member on the MYN. “It’s cool to see a community come together and support this one specific event.”
You can find the Queer Prom event on Facebook and contact board members for opportunities to volunteer, DJ, or purchase tickets.
Now some final tips for getting ready for the big night:
• Watch the Sex in the City episode where Carrie attends Stanford’s Queer Prom
• Have a Pretty in Prink dance party
• Make your own dress
• Sabotage someone else’s

Happy Prom Season!