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NCS Participates in the “Day of Silence”
On Friday, April 11, Middle and Upper School students could choose to participate in the National Day of Silence, a day of action in which students across the country vow to take a form of silence to call attention to the silencing effect of anti-LGBT bullying and harassment in schools.
Along with posters in the hallways and “selfie” booths in the lunchroom set up by the Middle School, students who participated were asked to maintain their silence. This silence only applied outside of the classroom. Students had cards to hand out that explained their silence, which stated:
“Please understand my reasons for not speaking today. I am participating in the Day of Silence (DOS), a national youth movement to bringing attention to the silence faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people and their allies. My deliberate silence echoes that silence, which is caused by anti-LGBR bullying, name-calling and harassment. I believe that ending the silence is the first step toward building awareness and making a commitment to address the injustices.”
The Day of Silence was started in 1996 by the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), an organization that seeks to root out in schools discrimination and harassment based on perceived sexual orientation and gender identity and expression.
At the end of the day, members of NCS’s Queer-Straight Alliance (QSA) members broke their silence by participating in a joint meeting with members of St. Albans’ Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA). Students discussed what it was like to be silent all day and how it provided them with insight into the silencing and marginalization that many LGBT adolescents often experience in school. The group also discussed specific ideas they could implement to create a more open and accepting environment in both schools.
