Prom: At Least It’s Harmless

By: Olivia Aragon 

On April 16, 2022, George Fox University (GFU) held a Make-Up prom in an effort to make up for the proms that many freshman and sophomores did not get to have due to Covid. This prom was hosted at the Portland art museum. 

Personally, I love this idea. As a freshman myself, I never really got a prom experience. Hearing that we would be having a make-up prom made me and many of my friends super excited. 

I have heard some arguments against the idea. Some say that prom is stupid in general so it’s not worth having a makeup one. Others argue that we should leave high school in high school and by hosting a make-up prom we are living in the past. 

Now I respect the idea that every person is able to have their own opinions but I do not think that either of those arguments is a good argument against the idea of a make-up prom. Sure, prom may be stupid and not nearly as great as people make it out to be, but shouldn’t we be given the opportunity to experience the stupidity ourselves? I am a big believer in not letting others’ experiences dictate what I choose to do, so if prom is stupid I want to go to prom and experience it’s stupidity and think it’s stupid myself.

The idea that we should leave high school in high school is an idea that I understand but do not agree with. How is it harmful at all that this makeup prom was hosted? This does not regress us to our high school selves. If anything it helps heal the fact that many of us feel we missed out on the true high school experience by not being able to go to prom. 

I try to form my opinions on things by weighing the pros and cons and how much harm something will cause. And honestly, this makeup prom does absolutely no harm. It simply gives those who wished they would have had prom a prom. So even if you disagree with the idea of a makeup prom because you think it’s stupid, why would you want to take that experience away from so many people who clearly wanted it?

My time at the Makeup prom was a blast and I am so grateful that GFU hosted a makeup prom. It gave me the experience of prom dress shopping with all my friends, getting ready together, taking pictures, and eating dinner together afterward.

Jessica Daugherty