School bans father-daughter dances

[Greenday]

If you didn't have enough respect for the school and the ceremony to dress appropriately, then you didn't deserve to go.

Makes sense to me. If you don't respect the school or its rules, why even go? If you want to dress like a slob or trash, then go to a club.

[Jester]

If the school banned her from going simply because she didn't have a father to go with (or similar male relative/parental figure), I totally understand where she's coming from, and how she would feel excluded. As a boy who lost his father when I was 10, I often was aware of "father-son" events, but never went. And I had no male relative to go with, none that I was close to, and none within 100 miles. Now, had I wanted to go to such an event with my mom, and the event organizers had said no, I would have been pretty pissed off.

Do I think the complaint to the school was appropriate? If they were saying she couldn't attend, yes.

Do I think that the school overreacted by just ending the whole thing? Also, yes. Simply adjust with the times, say that "father-daughter dances" are now open to girls with other parental figures. Not that tough to do.

I wonder how often my niece dealt with this kind of crap growing up? I wonder because she never knew her father--although this was a good thing, as by all accounts he was pretty much a druggie douchebag asshole.