I'm a bit confounded by this story. The News Sentinel has done uncritical "women's page" reporting on this event forever, running pix of the debs when they are named, along with their parents' names, and then a freelancer kind of backs into the 'secret' heart of the ball.

It's been one of those wink, wink, nothing to see, kind of deals forever, too. It's impossible to believe that nobody realized this policy existed, since there's never been a non-white Dogwood deb since the beginning. But at least they didn't hold it at CCC (I think they used to).

Kind of reminds me of when Doug Dickey, upon being asked if Wade Houston, like all the other UT coaches, would get a CCC membership as part of his contract package, replied, "That's not an option."

Now THAT stirred up a shitstorm.

Just because some of you are unfamiliar with some social traditions that have occurred forever around here doesn't mean they are bad...

I enjoyed this story in the KNS very much and came to my own conclusions...bottom line, it seems that the older ball has maintained the traditional purpose of the debutante ball more so than has the one based at Cherokee CC.

I thought it was a great story...

Wow! Saw the headline. Didn't read the article. Unbelievable.

Not trying to hijack the post, but the headline reminded me of this recent KNS glowing review of Twin Peaks "breastaurant":

Twin Peaks: Come for the view, stay for the brew

What century, indeed.

Also reminds me of the time they ran a front page feature on the "misunderstood" Nathan Bedford Forrest for Black History Month.

As my spouse observed, that remark would have been condescending in 1975.

In 1964 it would have been socially acceptable and par for the course, so to speak.

If we just put a little effort into it, we can eke out one more generation with no significant interaction with a minority. ... even in this "post racial" Amur'kkka.

The AKA affair for the young African-American ladies sounded much nicer than the Dogwood affair. Those white girls sounded pretty crass, didn't you think?!

(BTW, debutante Dreama Coats, in the very large pic on page 10E, is the daughter of former KCEA President Tanya Coats--who is receiving lots of congratulations on her FB page today!)

I should add that I'm one of those people who rolls her eyes when debutantes are mentioned. Totally archaic concept, IMO. AND sexist. However, I agree that AKA sounds like it has its values and standards straight.

"While there is no application process — the Dogwood Ball is by invitation only — there are at least three criteria young women must meet to be considered: they must be sophomores in college and unmarried. They also must be white. Trent said she does not see a problem with the event being segregated." Anne Trent

For Trent to casually make this remark proves she sees nothing wrong with segregation. She is a racist.

My daughter was one of the young women who participated in thia year's Dogwood Ball. It was. Fun event for our entire family. Now, however, I feel literally sick that we were involved. I will be contacting the coordinating committee this week for a refund of the fees we paid, and letting her know how appalled I am. I am 100% certain that other mothers of this year's DB participants will be doing the same thing.

Katie Allison
knoxville

Proud of you, Katie. Change always comes from *within* an organization. Said the same thing through all those years I volunteered for Boy Scouts of America, speaking quietly, firmly, repeatedly about their ban on gay Scouts and leaders.

Whatever this organization decides this year, though, I hope you remain involved there. You can effect change.

Your task, I think, will be to support and embrace all that is valuable in this group--and there is value to young women in participating there--even as you stand firm on how the organization can improve.

I'd like to contribute.

Tamara - no scholarships. To give you an idea of what it's like, just think of a fun party where the whole family dresses up and eats, drinks (the adults) and dances together. It's all about getting gussied up for an evening and just having a fun party with the focus on our daughters. Now that I realize that there's an actual POLICY in place preventing families of color from attending, my memory of what was a fun, family focused evening is entirely different. I am appalled and so embarrassed that we participated. But racist denial of admission aside (ahem), as for how it compares to the wonderful sounding AKA event, they really sound quite different. The AKA event sounds like a personal development program while the Dogwood Ball, like anther debutante events I attended while a college student really is just a lovely party with good food and dancing and such. And again, before I was aware of the explicit, ugly racism that is apparently a defining underpinning of this event, I would have told you that I honestly see nothing wrong with just throwing a party for a party's sake.

Katie Allison
Knoxville

I am grateful that the local newspaper did a story featuring prominently two organizations that seem to be similar but, as we noticed, highlighted a huge difference. I also don't understand the "debutante" concept and am tired of seeing so many white faces in the newspaper when our community is so diverse. Thanks for this article.

This is odd. The only East Tennessee Presentation Society I can find registered with the Tennessee Secretary of State appears to have been administratively dissolved in 2008. What does that mean?

Institutionalized racism is a pretty big deal to some of us. No apologies for my reaction to this.

I have to admit that the only thing I'm shocked about is that anybody's shocked. I'd bet money that most of these young women are members of segregated sororities and that a goodly number of the Knoxville residents' parents belong to Cherokee Country Club (unless they are running for office, whereupon they resign and say they're too busy to keep their membership).

If the organizers want to organize their events as they see fit and select who they want to select, they can do it as they please. Didn't bother anybody when a white legislator was excluded from joining the legislative black caucus. Perhaps certain segregated realities really do exist and they are allowed to exist because in the big picture they are menial and trivial.

It's those that are excluded that want to throw the segregation card around, didn't seem to bother either groups big events, but those on the outside looking in can't let anyone else have an evening with their family and their friends without finding some degree of fault in the event and throwing rocks at it. Perhaps that's why they weren't invited to attend either event.

It's institutionalized racism, corporatism, elitism, encouraging financial and social disparity among a lot of groups. There are plenty of people of all colors they won't let in, and many of these girls later reject a lot of the values that this event perpetrates.

It's still picking on girls who may or may not view what they're doing as a mistake brought on by social pressure.

Maybe we could dedicate ourselves to offering a better way, rather than having to pick on young women.

They are not too young to learn segregation is not a good thing.

Ann Trent, stated that "she does not see a problem with the event being segregated."

What Cathy said, Bob.

Personally, I didn't intend to disparage with my comments above the young women part of the Dogwood Ball.

I do, however, question the values of its adult organizers.

a) Nobody's picking on the girls. My guess is that if you allowed them to vote, they'd vote down a "whites only" policy. I hope so, anyway. We're picking on the adults who run this gig.

b) As to being shocked - I'm certainly not shocked that the Dogwood Ball is all white. It's always been that way. I AM surprised that its chair was so quick to acknowledge the official policy - and to defend it. And to make that horrible comment about AKA having another event for "their girls."

They've lost Cynthia Moxley.......

Disclaimer: both of my nieces were debs, and they are both as mortified as all the other mortified white people who read that old lady's comment in the KNS article. The trending reaction of folks I know who ever got into the thing is a mix of embarrassment, sadness, and anger.

But you know, seriously, wth did anybody ever not see right in front of their eyes? I am certain that the vast majority of participants didn't really think about it, just felt honored to be invited, and thought it was a positive, civilized experience for young women who are still growing up in important ways. (Before anybody judges them, be careful. If you live in Knoxville and have a lot of white friends in business, politics, and media, you know at least one deb or parent of a deb, and you would be right in assuming they are not racist, and that they are very upset about this "news.")

So I don't judge the people who didn't get it, but anybody who ever took an honest look at a newspaper story about the event had to notice the gleaming whiteness of every face that ever smiled out of the KNS society column. They just didn't connect the dots for reasons that translate to blinders, just not wanting to see anything odd there, because it's otherwise such a prestigious and gratifying opportunity. Now some old lady runs her mouth, posits that unpleasant yet transparent fact in no uncertain terms, and ruins it forever. Hell, I'm glad she said it. Now maybe people will stop pretending that pretentious, classist bullshit is anything you should be putting your daughters through.

The outrage that everybody seems to overlooking is how the KNS seemed to bury the story almost as soon as it appeared online yesterday - no comments, even. It was kiboshed.

About that "old lady" - seems a bit wrong for Ms. Trent to shoulder all the blame. According to a KNS story from January, here are (some of) the other members of the Board of the East Tennessee Presentation Society:

Anne Trent is chairperson of the Board and Sherry Wallace Barry is the Ball chairperson. Additional board members serving as chairpersons are Judy Pat Overby, Beverly Hogin, Carol Sheridan, Cecil Easterly, Sylvia Lacey, Lynn Leach, Katherine Reed, Ray Sherrill, Anne Taylor, and Velva Trent.

This whole debutante deal is a laughably antiquated rite of passage practiced by those who unquestioningly accept tradition (I'm cueing up Zero Mostel in my head here). I guess there are worse things – like ritual female genital mutilation, or foot binding.

But racism's right up there.

I'm sure the other nice ball for young ladies will continue onward without additional comment, criticism, or other concern.

Maybe when there's nothing else left in Knoxville but the memories of what a really neat place it was to live, work, and raise your family before all of the rock throwers found their way into places they really had no business being, maybe just then the rock throwing will stop, but I doubt it.

I felt compelled to offer some thoughts from my experiences in anti-racist work and training as an organizer. Its effects are pernicious and vile. Ms. Trent and others who feel as she does could perhaps at least ponder not only its obvious effects on people of color now, in the past and future but also on how it affects Ms. Trent and her ilk.

• Actively oppose racism and white racial supremacy.
• Challenge our own biases such as internalized racial superiority.
• Fight against individual and structural expressions of racism.
• Understand that race is a social construct, not a biological concept.
• Think clearly about the meaning of the term "white privilege" from individual and structural viewpoints.
• Engage as supporters of people of color, not leaders on behalf of their struggle.

I would invite anyone connected to the CCC or the Dogwood Ball group to check out the Peoples Institute for Survival and Beyond and have them conduct a training with their leadership.

I'm finding it hard to believe that Ms. Trent and the committee could be so blatantly racist and willing to say it in print and not expect any repercussions. One of my friends said that maybe she was misquoted and the requirement is that they WEAR white, but if you read the original, you know it wasn't a misquote. Ms. Trent went on to say that she was glad that AKA had an event for "their" girls too.

Some traditions aren't worth keeping. This is one of them.

I still can't believe that the woman in charge said that but I do want to point out that if you go look at who the Dogwood Ball debutantes were this year, at least one of the girls was not white.

(link...)

I also think that it would be fair to ask the AKA organizers how many white debutantes they've had apply for their program and of those, how many were accepted. How many white AKA debutantes have there ever been in Knoxville? I am guessing not many if any.

Racism sucks. If families want to throw these kinds of activities for their daughters, the whole process should be totally integrated.

A: Fox News

Q: What happens to former debutantes? (link...)

Put me in the camp of not shocked. At all.

You don't need video of racist frat songs or quotes from an "old lady" to understand what these clubs are about.

Them’s Some Débutante Balls All Right. East Tennessee Style

Chattanooga's deb event, the Cotton Ball, desegregated in 1999. And it was in the paper at the time that they had their first black deb, because I remember reading it - and knew the girl in question - and was shocked that it had taken until 1999 for there to be a non-white deb. And I'm still embarrassed it took them so long. (I was not a deb, but many close friends were.) I mean, even Augusta National has a black female member now - wtf is wrong with Knoxville?

WVLT: Trent denies racist remarks

Trent is the one who gave the paper the interview and says she was just as shocked as anyone when she read the article.

"I wouldn't want people to think I felt that way," says Trent.

It may be her name next to the words, but Trent says they're not hers.

"I did not say that because that is not in our bylaws. There is nothing in our bylaws to say that," says Trent.

I doubt Trent is actively racist/segregationist but just rather traditionalist/not-rocking-the-boat.

And yes Knoxville leadership is often in their own boat cut-off from the rest. Look around you. Leadership meetings, churches, etc. Heck, look at Neyland Stadium next time, and then on the field.

Stuff like this affects the common person very little.

"I did not say that because that is not in our bylaws. There is nothing in our bylaws to say that," says Trent. "They are chosen for just being outstanding girls in their school, their church, athletics."

What if a girl is outstanding but she goes to a synagogue or a mosque or doesn't participate in any organized religion? These are still exclusionary criteria meant to preserve outdated Southern cultural norms. My guess is few - if any - that aren't WASPS have ever been invited. And I would guess that excellence in athletics has been interpreted loosely.

By the way, there's a high school version of this, although I don't know who runs it and forgot what it's called.

When were the bylaws written and last approved?

Honestly, how many have read the bylaws from organizations they have belonged to?

Who is Lesli Bales-Sherrod? The reporter that wrote this KNS story? Did the KNS fact check this piece? Or did they, as they sometimes do, run with it because it was juicy? Why didn't KNS respond to WVLT's request for a comment on Anne Trent's denial?

(link...)

"Lesli Bales-Sherrod, who previously worked for The Daily Times as a reporter in 2005-2006, has returned to the newspaper as a full-time reporter to cover municipal government.

She is replacing government reporter Iva Butler, who retired."

I don't recall seeing a byline from Lesli Bales-Sherrod in the KNS before this. If there is not a voice recording, then the KNS needs to explain how this got printed. This is reminiscent of the salacious 15 year old birthday party in the KNS several years ago in 2006. The Leslie Gibbs debacle. All the KNS links are dead. But this KnoxViews link recaptures the event: (link...)

Anne Trent's denial doesn't comport with the entirety of her quote (as others have pointed out).

But it should be a simple matter for her to pull out the scrap book and display all the diversity. Heck, they've probably got everything from AOPi to ZTA.

If you picked up your morning newspaper or received an alarmed call from a friend or saw all manner of indignation at a story in which you were quoted and, in fact, never said the offending comment, that it was completely fabricated or misinterpreted, what would be your reaction? Me? I'd be ringing the hook off the phone of the editor, the publisher, etc... demanding a correction. If instead you made the comment but are now catching heat for it, what would be your reaction? Claim you were misquoted. Shoot the messenger, etc. Just saying.

I think Trent got taught in the legacy of shame, which a lot of people were responsible for.

taught
caught

At 6 pm- great interviews with @JackatNews @cmmoxley about Dogwood Ball & race in Knoxville. @knoxviews also gets a shout out.

(link...)

So no one is looking yet at the true tradition of the debutante ball. It started as a meat market. It was a chance for young "ladies" born to money and prestige to show their beauty and their graces to families of young men with money and prestige. The goal was marriage within the class. And it was certainly marriage within the race since miscegenation was illegal then.

One thing we can say for what Mrs. Trent told the reporter: We know exactly where she stands. The recanting that took place the next day is far less credible. Whether the bylaws say or don't say really isn't the point. The point is that white privilege, as always, puts its smarmy, indecent mark on most of what those of us with pale skin participate in.

We have begun to analyze and reject white privilege, but we have only begun. Will we have the maturity to continue?

Jack McElroy's comments on WATE show the KNS knew this would blow up. When contacted by WATE the Dogwood Ball group denied the quote. Trent did not respond to WATE. There was no recording. Only reporter's notes according to McElroy. McElroy says reporter contacted Trent again to verify what was said. Trent said if this story is about race, I don't want the story printed.

Cough up the notes KNS.

Sorry. Jack McElroy

Why any of you dignify BP (alias 9) with a response is beyond me. Much better to ignore the hell out of him.

"It is clear that Trent and the Dogwood Ball people will not take calls from the KNS. They don't trust them."

Not so very clear that distrust is the reason. They may not want to have to face the storm that has come upon them. People used to having their own way behave like this.

We all understand that if you are taking names from people in your select circle, nobody Black is likely to be included. And in fact, if anyone Black has ever been included, she has been rejected. Why do you want to distract from the reality by speculating about the notes? What is your vested interest here?

From International Business Times...

Tennessee Debutante Ball Is For Whites Only: Knoxville Society Group Accused Of Racism

If McElroy didn't trust the reporter, that quote never would have seen the light of day. My guess is that the story was written and the reporter's supervising editor went over it and then took it to McElroy. It was all reviewed, and it was decided that because it was clearly going to cause an uproar, Trent should be given a chance to say something else about her remark. And at that point she realized that she'd said something on the record that she never meant to, that she believed all "good"people would clearly understand would be off the record. And she was likely in denial ever since that follow up conversation, telling herself that by either denying it was ever said or refusing to talk to other media that she'd get through it.

It is hilarious to read people ask for pictures to show that these balls are diverse. Neither ball is diverse. If you believe one should be integrated (which I do) you cannot believe the other should be allowed to keep out the oppressors or keep it a safe space or whatever new terms racists who have redefined racism use.

If you believe only white people can be racist, you are racist.
The highlander center and other racist orgs that work aggresively against the dream of MLk and a cokor lind society make me furious.

It is hilarious to read people ask for pictures to show that these balls are diverse. Neither ball is diverse. If you believe one should be integrated (which I do) you cannot believe the other should be allowed to keep out the oppressors or keep it a safe space or whatever new terms racists who have redefined racism use.

If you believe only white people can be racist, you are racist.
The highlander center and other racist orgs that work aggresively against the dream of MLk and a cokor lind society make me furious.

Color blind...

It is almost as hypocritical as Jimmy Carter hating on the Southern Baptists for their views on women while loving the Muslims to read the deep seated antipathy of people towards white only groups who attend and celebrate groups that are for blacks only like the ones the KNS celebrates every year.

Writes about the horrific racism faced by her friends at a party for old rich white people because two of them thought her friend was a member of the band.

Her friend is married to the head of a group that in writing excludes whites from the work they do. Providing scholarships to one color or opportunities to one color is wrong.
(link...)

Anyone who voted against Obama because he is black is a racist and I have nothing but contempt for them. Anyone who voted for Obama because he is black is a racist as well.

FYI, the reporter on this story is a stellar journalist and human being. She's not "just a freelancer." She's an extremely experienced reporter who has also worked in media relations at the highest levels of the federal government. Lesli would never get a quote like that wrong. I'm very pleased that the KNS is backing her publicly on this issue.

Katie Allison
Knoxville, TN