Students Punished for Homecoming Protest

More than a dozen students who were protesting against one of their male classmates in the running to become homecoming queen were given in-school suspension Monday.

According to TriCities.com, David Crockett High School in Jonesborough, Tenn., selects only a homecoming queen and princess, but this year, a male 11th-grader, who was not identified by the website, put his name on the ballot. The student did not win enough votes to wear the crown, but the students protesting Friday afternoon were told they would be punished Monday for disrupting the school day.

James Murphy, Washington County assistant director of schools for attendance and discipline, said school policy does not specify whether the position must be held by a male or female student, but he said the student has a constitutional right to run for the title.