ACLU: Women sue for access to men-only event
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – The ACLU is challenging a men-only fundraiser featuring baseball legend Pete Rose. The event will support the Lawrenceburg High School Athletic Department.
It was first publicized on April 8 and stated that attendance was limited to men only, according to the ACLU. Tickets are only available through the high school.
Christina Osborn and Jessica Hillyer are the two women in the lawsuit that are petitioning to attend the event.
“My first reaction was ‘Why men only?’ What message is this sending to the students? The school needs to be sent a message that discrimination is not allowed,” said Osborn in a news release. “I’ve been following Pete Rose since I was in high school and even signed online petitions to allow him to be admitted to the Baseball Hall of Fame. And I’ve always followed Lawrenceburg athletics. It’s kind of hard not to when you’re from a small town.”
“Lauren Hill, the Mount St. Joseph University basketball player who has been playing even though she has terminal brain cancer, is an LHS alumni and inspiration to our community,” said Hillyer in the news release. “Excluding women from a fundraiser for the LHS athletic department is not consistent with our community’s support of this wonderful young woman.”
The lawsuit was filed on March 23. It aims to prevent the school corporation from excluding women from the event.