A transgender girl from Mississippi has chosen to skip her high school graduation after she was demanded by administrators to dress like a boy during the ceremony.
A judge had refused to block the order.
The 17-year-old, identified as "L.B," was told by officials she was expected to adhere to the boys' dress code for graduation or wear "pants, socks, and shoes, like a boy."
The district was sued on Thursday by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of the teen and her parents.
The school's decision was upheld by US District Judge Taylor McNeel.
The attorney for the school argued the ceremony was voluntary and attending isn't a constitutionally protected right.
An attorney for the ACLU called the move "as disappointing as it is absurd."
“Our client is being shamed and humiliated for explicitly discriminatory reasons, and her family is being denied a once-in-a-lifetime milestone in their daughter’s life. No one should be forced to miss their graduation because of their gender.”
According to school officials, the teen “had met all the qualifications to receive a diploma,” and even selected a white dress to wear with her cap and gown.
The lawsuit claimed she had been wearing dresses to class and other activities throughout high school, including prom, and shouldn't be facing discriminatory treatment during graduation.
Once school officials found out she had plans to follow the girls' dress code, the superintendent Mitchell King told her mother she couldn't participate unless she wears “pants, socks, and shoes, like a boy."
The judge ultimately sided with the school district's attorney claiming the ceremony was voluntary.
Over 30 bills have been introduced this year in Mississippi aimed at limiting rights of LGBTQ citizens.
2021 saw the state as the first to ban transgender athletes from competing in women's and girl's sports.
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