Global reaction to MO high school kilt flap

By Greg Reeves
No one laughs at Mel Gibson or Sean Connery when they wear kilts. But Jackson (MO) High School senior Nathan Warmack was told he looked like a clown and ordered to change before he could attend a dance.

I blogged about this three weeks ago. Since then, more than 11,000 people have signed a shocked-and-appalled petition (with thousands of comments), and I heard from Matt Alexander, an Internet businessman in Glasgow, Scotland.
"The petition is snowballing at an incredible rate," Matt told me by phone. "It's become quite a big issue here in Scotland.
Scots from the Hebrides  to the Shetland Islands, in fact, have been gatherin' 'round to talk about it, he said.
"They have gotten other clan family members to come together and discuss this matter and jointly may wish to express their dissatisfaction with the principal’s decision," Matt said.
And the issue has bounced around globally. Here are some press links:

Scotland:
Scots sign up to help U.S. kilt ban student
US SCHOOL IN SPORRAN POLICY ROW
Kilt hire shops in the Highlands are struggling to cope with demand as secondary school kids are ditching suits in favour of tartan for Christmas dances and proms
Highlanders support kilt ban pupil"
What's with these uneducated educators? (with 26 pages of comments!)

Australia:
Scottish pride turns to dance ban (Sydney Morning Herald)

India:
School kilt ban draws protest (newkerala.com)

England:
Dander up over school kilt ban (London Free Press)

And this:

Celebrities in kilts
How to wear your kilt

"I think it’s gone beyond people saying that was a bad decision," Matt said. "I think it’s now become big enough for it to be used for good reason and for good effect. There’s so much the school could do by talking about culture and heritage if they got their head out of the sand."

In the sand is where the school apparently wants to stay. I called the high school and was told Principal Rick McClard had no comment.

I wonder what the high school should do, if anything. (I also wonder how I could wangle a trip to Scotland out of this...)

Comments

I wouldn't use Sean Connery as an example of the correct way to behave. I saw him on Jeopardy! one time, and he seemed to be rather rude, and somewhat insane, also not very bright.

[KC]

Who really cares if this kid wants to wear a kilt or not? I would rather look at a young man expressing his pride in the heritage of his family than someone wearing jeans that are 14 sizes too big and I have to look at their @$$-crack!

[kerry]

a distraction from what? all the dancing going on? there wasnt any educating being done at the school dance, so what would his kilt be distracting anyone from doing?

[kerry]

The poor kid spent good money for the kilt, and to rent the horse and buggy to get to the dance.. This principal is helping further non-midwesterners view that we are stuck in the stonage.. Captain Caveman should transfer to Kansas, and teach "Creation" during science class.

[J. Hargis]

I totally agree with the person that wrote they would rather see the kilts than jeans too big hanging to their knees and their whole backside showing!!!!!!!!!!! That is so GROSS

[kerry]

The poor kid spent good money for the kilt, and to rent the horse and buggy to get to the dance.. This principal is helping further non-midwesterners view that we are stuck in the stonage.. Captain Caveman should transfer to Kansas, and teach "Creation" during science class.

[LMacDonald]

What if this had been a jewish kid wearing a yamulka or a bengalese wearing a sari?..Can you imagine the cries of bigotry? The school would be forced to respond under those circumstances!

[Silence Dogood]

This would not have been a problem if they just did away with dances altogether. All of that gyrating and hedonism just leads to fornicating anyways. It's the Devil! Sincerely, the Dad from Footloose, the Kansas Board of Education, and Phil Kline.

[Sean Connery]

Damn you and your Daily Doubles! I'll take The Rapists for $200, Trebek.