All-white Denver Debutante Ball needs diversity.

Iwas home my first Saturday night of college winter break, and my social media feed was overwhelmed with fancy dresses, updos and glamour. Captions like “can’t wait to get married” were used jokingly, alluding to an era where women were not seen as independent people capable of being breadwinners or intellectuals.

Welcome to the Denver Debutante Ball, circa 2018: a cultural artifact rooted in pre-1950s America. It’s 2018, and Denver is still proudly putting on several debutante balls.

My Instagram was flooded with images of college and high school girls of little diversity. Yet Denver ranks 84th out of 501 major cities in terms of cultural diversity. This event lacks representation of the Denver I know, given that about three-quarters of Denver Public School students are of color, and, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, 49 percent of the city’s population identify as people of color.

A night intended to make young women feel celebrated, the event upholds traditions that historically promoted classism, sexism and racism.

A debutante is defined as a young woman from a prestigious family who is presented to highclass society for the first time. Heteronormative in nature, these debutante balls originated in Europe in the 19th century when upper-class families would offer their daughters to bachelors. Still today, they are lavish affairs exclusive of people who cannot afford it or are not chosen due to elitist criteria.

This year’s Denver Debutante Ball, which was hosted at the Brown Palace, costs each young woman’s family approximately $2,500 to participate, according to an article in The Denver Post. That number doesn’t include the dress or parties families throw for their daughters. Twenty-eight girls were selected as scholars in their community, upholders of leadership and service values. A quick glance at the photo of these chosen “scholars” reveals, however, a group of white debs with not a single woman of color represented.

I understand the importance of tradition, camaraderie and mentorship; however, in 2018, isn’t it time for the debutante balls to be reflective of the Denver community we live in? By selecting 28 debutantes who are white, it sends the message that to be recognized as a scholar, you have to be Caucasian — and your parents also have to be able to afford it.

While this event historically appealed to sexist and classist values, that doesn’t mean the Denver Debutante Ball has to. Times are changing, and the debutante balls often raise thousands of dollars for charities.

However, these events should at least include scholars from all backgrounds to represent the city we live in.

With more pressing issues facing Denver today, such as the education-achievement gap and the gender-pay gap, it’s easy to be dismissive of events for the elite that do not affect the city’s population. However, it is not the event itself that is concerning, but that the women Denver puts on pedestals reflect no diversity. Thus, we will suffer from the false notion that one’s ability to lead or be seen for their accomplishments is contingent on their race.

I realize that any time you upset the cultural apple cart, some rotten apples will spill out. Cultural change does not occur without resistance. It is clear, however, that these antiquated rituals need some polishing.

If Denver is insistent on upholding this tradition, let’s revise the event so that debutante scholars include the young brilliant women of color in our community or those from low-income households. I was proud to see that the 2018 Jack & Jill Beautillion Ball finally received coverage recently in The Denver Post, an event created to combat negative stereotypes of AfricanAmerican males in the community by celebrating their successes.

When I return to the place I’ve called home for 18 years, I don’t want to see scholarship synonymous with being white — because it’s not.