Washington High School Discriminates Against Male Cheerleader

He wasn't allowed to move his legs or hips when cheering. It sounds like the 50's when Elvis Presley was censored.

PALOUSE, Wash., Feb. 3 (UPI) -- A male high school cheerleader in Washington state says administrators discriminated against him by not letting him perform the same routines as the girls.

Benjamin Grundy said he was told at the start of the year at Garfield-Palouse High School in Palouse that he would be able to participate in dance routines and other activities performed by the female cheerleaders, only to be pressured later to wear a mascot's uniform and barred from moving his legs or hips while cheering, Spokane's KXLY-TV reported Wednesday.

Grundy's mother, Suzanne, said her letters to state officials, the American Civil Liberties Union and other groups -- including KXLY -- pressured the school to give her son an official cheer uniform and pompoms. However, she said she does not consider the case closed and she wants further measures taken, including seminars against discrimination and reprimands for involved school officials.

"I think the combination of a biracial, mentally challenged gay male may be too much for them," Suzanne Grundy said of school officials.