Aaron Fricke (born January 25, 1962) is an American

gay rights Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality. Not ...

activist and author. He was born in

Pawtucket, Rhode Island Pawtucket ( ) is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 75,604 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making the city the fourth-largest in the state. Pawtucket borders Providence, Rhode Island, Prov ...

. He is best known for '' Fricke v. Lynch'', a legal case in which he won his first amendment legal right to attend prom and for his autobiography ''Reflections of a Rock Lobster'' in which he details growing up gay culminating at that high school dance.

Court case

Shortly after he

came out Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBTQ people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. This is often framed and debated as a privacy issue, ...

in 1980, Fricke began seeing another male student. Fricke decided to bring him as his date to the prom. When the high school informed Fricke he could not bring him to the prom, he filed suit in U.S. District court. The presiding judge, Raymond J. Pettine, ruled in Fricke's favor, ordering the school to not only allow him and his partner to attend as a couple but also to provide enough security to ensure their safety.

ACLU The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is an American nonprofit civil rights organization founded in 1920. ACLU affiliates are active in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. The budget of the ACLU in 2024 was $383 million. ...

Who are you taking to the prom this year?
/ref> The case received considerable media attention, and news camera crews filmed and interviewed the couple at the dance. The case set a

precedent Precedent is a judicial decision that serves as an authority for courts when deciding subsequent identical or similar cases. Fundamental to common law legal systems, precedent operates under the principle of ''stare decisis'' ("to stand by thin ...

that has been used across the United States to establish a legal right for students to bring same sex partners to school proms and other school social events.

Writing

Fricke later wrote of his experience in a book, ''Reflections of a Rock Lobster: A Story about Growing Up Gay''. He later collaborated with his father, Walter, on ''Sudden Strangers: the Story of a Gay Son and his Father'', a book about their relationship and of the elder Fricke's coming to terms with his son's

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or Human sexual activity, sexual behavior between people of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexu ...

. That book was published shortly after Walter Fricke's death from

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

in 1989. In 2012 and 2013, Boston Children's Theatre presented a play based on the book, adapted by Burgess Clark. The play received national attention for its anti-bullying message. BCT became the first children's repertory theater in the United States to portray gay rights issues with this production. Mr. Fricke's archive includes correspondence and the period of writing the two books, is held in the

San Francisco Public Library The San Francisco Public Library is the public library system of the city and county of San Francisco in United States. The Main Library is located at Civic Center, at 100 Larkin Street. The library system has won several awards, such as ''Libr ...

AARON FRICKE PAPERS 1980-1991
/ref>

References

External links

various images, Sarah Karlan, "In 1980, Two Boys Fought For The Right To Attend Prom Together", BuzzFeed LGBT, May 30, 2013Aaron Fricke's[http://www.ourstory.com/aaronfrickediaries OurStory.com/aaronfrickediaries] Diaries
— OurStory.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Fricke, Aaron American LGBTQ rights activists 1962 births Living people American gay writers Writers from Providence, Rhode Island People from Cumberland, Rhode Island LGBTQ people from Rhode Island 21st-century American LGBTQ people

Court case

Writing

See also

References

External links