By Jeralynn Borges, staff writer
One does not need to be extraordinary to be an everyday hero. Sometimes spreading the word is all it takes to help save a life or two, and in some cases staying silent and brightly colored can do the trick.
During the week of April 17 of this year, Indian Trail students took part in Ally Week as sponsored by the school Gay Straight Alliance, with the week culminating in a Day of Silence on Friday. LGBTQ students and Allies raise awareness here by selling ribbons, buttons, and this year T-shirts to show support and help stop bullying.
It can be hard to believe, but here in Wisconsin, we have no specific antibullying laws for cases in- volving sexual orientation or gender identity that also do not apply to nonreligious private schools. Because there is no set line against bullying for LG- BTQ students, schools must do their best to create safety for the students themselves and in many cases students must help each other to get by.
On the actual Day of Silence, some students and adults alike are encouraged (with school per- mission) to stay silent all day unless called on by a teacher or other staff. Because of this, you must sign up and have a pass to join in the exercise. During the day, these students may face teasing and bullying simply because they choose to be silent or if they may have spoken for some reason or another. The idea is to create “silence for those who can no longer speak out” was originally founded in 1996, by a University in Virginia which began one of the largest student-led actions toward bringing attention to bullying and creating safer schools for all.
Although this event is mostly student led, of course the students need support from their teachers and peers to make it a success, as the general goal is to grab attention and raise awareness.
“There are a lot of teachers that say they’re against (bullying) it and all, but when they hear stupid slang words that are offensive to LGBTQ people, they don’t do anything about it,” said Communications junior and GSA member Gloria Morales.
When becoming part of a school staff, instruc- tors decide to not only teach this next generation but also to protect them as well as support them in other ways, especially in feeling accepted into society. Then why is it so difficult to reason with not only legalizing homosexual marriage but recognizing as well as respecting each type of sexuality and gender? Critics argue it is un-natural. Homosexual behavior has been seen from around 1,500 species, ranging from primates to gut worms, but not in the exclu- sive and hidden way humans are used to. Every human is entitled to his or her own opinion, but you cannot use that opinion to make others suffer. Ally Week is used to draw attention to this.
Part of the difficulty in hosting Ally Week, as well as Day of Silence, in school is appealing to all mem- bers and supporters of the LGBTQA community. There are members who appreciate help and support of straight allies and wish to thank them, but there are also members who believe the community is fine without straight allies being thanked at all.
“It’s interesting, I’ve done this two years now and some people react negatively to the fact we have an Ally Week,” said Shawna Ward, the Gay Straight Alliance advisor and librarian. “They would like the school to have what they call a ‘Pride Week,’ but other students are accepting or happy that (Ally Week) is occurring. They’re just not as vocal as the others. Like in a lot of things, if people are happy with the situation, they don’t complain about it and you don’t know about it.”
The silence and festive support weeks are attempts to make an impact on society. The voice and actions of people, including teens, will determine what kind of impact.