FULTON, Miss. — The media whirlwind continues for Constance McMillen, the Mississippi student whose desire to take her girlfriend to the high school prom led to the cancellation of the event and a lawsuit from the ACLU against the school district.

McMillen’s media appearances have included “The Wanda Sykes Show,” the CBS Early Show, MSNBC and “The Joy Behar Show,” according to the Facebook page “Let Constance Take Her Girlfriend to the Prom!” set up by the ACLU. At press time, the page had almost 290,000 fans.

“I never thought in a thousand, a billion years that there would be that many people that were supporting what I was doing. ... I just want to say that I think you should stand up for what you believe in, stand up for who you are,” McMillen says in a video posted on the site.

The ACLU filed a federal lawsuit March 11 after the school board called off the prom at Itawamba Agricultural High School in Fulton, Miss., rather than allow McMillen and her girlfriend to attend as a couple.

“Itawamba school officials are trying to turn Constance into the villain who called the whole thing off, and that just isn’t what happened. She’s fighting for everyone to be able to enjoy the prom,” said Kristy Bennett, Legal Director of the ACLU of Mississippi, in a press release. “The government, and that includes public schools, can’t censor someone’s free expression just because some other person might not like it.”

The ACLU seeks a preliminary injunction to require the school to hold the April 2 prom and allow McMillen and her date to attend, with McMillen wearing a tuxedo.

Meanwhile, the Mississippi Safe Schools Coalition says it has received multiple offers from other venues willing to host a prom for the students.

Photo: Constance McMillen says she was just trying to be herself when she asked her Mississippi high school to let her bring a female date to the prom. (Photo via Facebook)