High schooler pulled from musical over Texas’ anti-DEI law sues, alleging discrimination

A North Texas high school senior is suing her school district for not allowing her to portray a male character in a campus theater role that she earned.

Ana Mota, 17, alleges that Grand Prairie school administrators discriminated against her on the basis of sex when they notified theater faculty a week into rehearsals for “Little Shop of Horrors” that the teenager could not play the lead character, who is male.

District officials publicly attributed their decision to Senate Bill 12, a sweeping law banning diversity, equity, and inclusion practices, instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity, and LGBTQ+ student clubs in Texas public schools.

The production was canceled after Mota declined her reassignment to another role that she would have had to share with another student and for which she had not auditioned.

The lawsuit asks a federal judge to prohibit Grand Prairie ISD leadership from discriminating against her and to restore the production. The musical was scheduled for Dec. 10.

Background: Texas Republicans passed SB 12 last year as part of a larger push to reshape how public schools engage with students and their families on topics such as racism, gender and sex — creating confusion for school employees over which campus activities constitute a violation.

“Little Shop of Horrors,” a comedy about a man who raises a human-eating plant, is often performed by high school students. The play’s lead character, Seymour, develops a romantic interest in a female character named Audrey. The original script depicts a kiss between the two, which the school had planned to scrap regardless of the actors, according to The Dallas Morning News.

Students will now perform the musical “Frozen” instead.

Mota’s lawsuit states that her parents attempted to contact district officials to receive clarification on which provisions of SB 12 the school would have violated. Administrators never responded, the lawsuit alleges.

The lawsuit: Mota and her parents argue that the district is violating federal Title IX protections, which prohibit schools from denying or excluding students’ participation in any educational program on the basis of sex.

Mota went through auditions and was picked by faculty for the role because she was the best fit, the lawsuit notes. The complaint argues that none of the key provisions in SB 12 prevent Mota from portraying the fictional character, adding that district officials instead undermined her parents’ authority to make decisions concerning their child.

“Nancy Jimenez-Mota and Rafael Mota fully supported Ana’s participation as Seymour,” the lawsuit states, referring to the teenager’s parents.

“District administrators told Ana and her mother directly that she had to be removed because she is female and replaced by a male student,” the complaint adds. “That is a sex-based personnel decision — an exclusion of a person from an educational program because of her sex — not a legitimate content or curricular judgment.”

Grand Prairie officials declined to comment on the lawsuit.