The Day of Silence

[Jennifer5]

Originally Posted by seifer_boy

This is done in schools? I never heard of that before. I never even heard of the Day of Silence before right now!

Don't worry... I didn't know anything about it either... still know very little...

[TigerXero]

Class is about to let out, so I don't know if I'll have time to say everything that I want to.

My best friend and I in our Senior year in high school (last year) had to give a presentation in front of the entire school faculty about what the Day of Silence was, why we needed it, etc., so I thought I could cover some basics for everyone here saying they don't know about it. Although... ugh, okay, I've gtg, but I will brb once I get to my dorm. Um... ttyl!

[TigerXero]

The simpliest thing I coud do is just to paste a basic statement from the www.dayofsilence.org website that sums up the purpose of the day.

DAY OF SILENCE, April 25, 2008: The Day of Silence is an annual event held to bring attention to anti-LGBT bullying, harassment and discrimination in schools. Students and teachers nationwide will observe the day in silence to echo the silence that LGBT and ally students face everyday. The Day of Silence is one of the largest student-led actions in the country.

A good idea we thought of but weren't able to do on our first year doing this was to put up posters around the school with national statistics concerning LGBT bullying, violence, etc. in school. At lot of time people just aren't aware of the discrimination that exists, so education and awareness are some simple ways we can fight that ignorance.

Often times I've had friends ask why take a vow of silence or how is that helping, and of course I can't answer, but I tell them the next day that it's supposed to symbolically represented the literal silence of GLBT students everywhere, though bullying, and unwelcoming environment, etc. I also explain that it is supposed to raise awareness of that enviroment. We thought the posters would be a good idea because it will raise awareness of the scale on which what we're protesting is actually happening.

We had a breakout time, an end of the Day of Silence (I forgot what we called it) type event after school let out, and we shared our stories from the day, talked about how we could improve it next year, etc.

The Day of Silence website has a lot more information about how to organize the event, order material for the event, and get help in organizing the Day at your school.

Heh, I ended up saying a lot more than I meant to, but hopefully it was very informative.

[Vanessa White]

Anyone have any activities that are planned on their campuses, or in their communities, for the Day of Silence?

I was thinking it was today, I know the University that I used to work at does an observance.

[keltic63]

Originally Posted by Vanessa White

Anyone have any activities that are planned on their campuses, or in their communities, for the Day of Silence?

I was thinking it was today, I know the University that I used to work at does an observance.

I'm actually thinking of taking the day off from work. It would be a way to silence my voice at work. of course, I'd have to make it clear that that's the reason I'm not there......

[Vanessa White]

You are just so out there lately; GOOD FOR YOU!!!!!!

I think that is a fabulous idea; I was trying to think of a way to make an impact on the job; that one is a great way........

[Zerbie]

Hmmm, I like the idea of doing something noticeable. . . . I dunno if being absent is the best way -- is there some way the stance could be taken while being AT work? Better if they can see you, then their attention will be brought to the point. Otherwise, isn't it possible they'll just get a sub or go on without you and not notice the point??? Not trying to be argumentative or dash down a potentially great idea -- hoping to make sure it gets noticed, is all.

RE: NDOS out here in AZ, I just received an action notice from a local organization indicating that a local school district has just banned students from participating in the Day of Silence. Particularly shocking in light of the recent murder of a 15 year old while in school. They have initiated a letter-writing campaign to the superintendent in that district.

If anyone wants to print, sign, and send a letter snail-mail to participate in this campaign, PM me with your email and I'll forward you the sample letter and the action alert that I received this morning.

[inca nitta]

Zerbie,

Do you know the reasons why the people in the district decided to cancel DOS? Have they explain them to the public? What do you know?

[Vanessa White]

Point well taken, Zerbie, about absence vs. presence and presenting a message directly to coworkers.....I also see the other side; organizations and employers "feeling" the pinch of what if these people were not here; what would your work force look like?

That really sucks about your district and the decision to cancel events. What kind of uprising could there possibly be, if that is the fear? Ah, yes, the old "give them information and they may just try to think for themselves." Like that kind of thinking works.......

Cynical rant over......

[Emproph]

Keep in mind that in defiance of the Day of Silence, the American Family Association is encouraging parents to keep their kids home from school that day.

Furthermore, and for what it’s worth, the ADF’s "Day of Truth" is slated for Monday April 28th - to directly counter / protest the Day of Silence.

I’ll post more in the Foyer, but that’s the gist of it. This is a seriously hot political issue that the anti-gays are all up in arms about -- in exactly the same way they were with the hate crimes legislation.

~~~

On a more proactive note:

The National Day of Silence brings attention to anti-LGBT name-calling, bullying and harassment in schools. This year’s event will be held in memory of Lawrence King, a California 8th-grader who was shot and killed Feb. 12 by a classmate because of his sexual orientation and gender expression. Hundreds of thousands of students will come together on April 25 to encourage schools and classmates to address the problem of anti-LGBT behavior.

Also, check out their video. I found it pleasantly surprising.
http://www.dayofsilence.org/content/video.html

[tymejumper]

My teen and her friends do this every year, cause she has lots of gay and bi friends. She thinks its crap that people have to hide.

I was so proud of her for doing this last year. She has a shirt that says "straight but not narrow" to wear for it.

[Gregory_de_Bois]

Originally Posted by Emproph

Keep in mind that in defiance of the Day of Silence, the American Family Association is encouraging parents to keep their kids home from school that day.

Furthermore, and for what it’s worth, the ADF’s "Day of Truth" is slated for Monday April 28th - to directly counter / protest the Day of Silence.

I’ll post more in the Foyer, but that’s the gist of it. This is a seriously hot political issue that the anti-gays are all up in arms about -- in exactly the same way they were with the hate crimes legislation.

~~~

On a more proactive note:


Also, check out their video. I found it pleasantly surprising.
http://www.dayofsilence.org/content/video.html

http://www.dayoftruth.org/about/default.aspx?cid=3561

That's there video. Don't you just love their "truth about homosexual behavior"? BLARG!!!!! Although the boy is pretty cute....

[Zerbie]

Originally Posted by inca nitta

Zerbie,

Do you know the reasons why the people in the district decided to cancel DOS? Have they explain them to the public? What do you know?

I've been wondering all day, had other stuff to do and couldn't get to the bottom of this.

I notice that the "Truth" group opposing DOS is apparently based in Scottsdale. That's just a few miles up the road from the town where, supposedly, they are prohibiting DOS. Perhaps the anti-gay organization complained and made some statements about "promoting homosexual agendas," to which the district responded by shutting down the DOS in hopes of avoiding a conflict. I would love to know and hope I can find out. Want to know what's going on before I finalize and mail any letter!

Btw - it's my past experience that "promoting the homosexual agenda" means "wants gay people to be allowed to live/remain physically safe/keep their jobs. . . " and it's a way of making it sound like treating people like human beings is dangerous. To "spin" human lives, safety, and dignity in such a way is exceedingly dangerous and unconscionable. The Day of Silence is precisely the kind of caring, supportive gesture that communities need.

[Emproph]

Zerbie, I just did a cursory search and this article came up:

Gay-support club, GPS at odds over promotion
by Emily Gersema - Apr. 10, 2008
The Arizona Republic

[Emproph]

Originally Posted by Gregory_de_Bois

http://www.dayoftruth.org/about/default.aspx?cid=3561

That's there video. Don't you just love their "truth about homosexual behavior"? BLARG!!!!!

Here’s the full text of what they say:

It’s time, for an honest conversation about homosexuality. Visit day of truth dot org, and sign up to break the silence.

On Monday April 28th, share the truth about homosexual behavior.

“Behavior” being code for sexual perversion / promiscuity. Thus, their response to the attention brought to bullying and violence against GLBT students, is to “share the truth” that gay students are sexual perverts, thereby increasing the likelihood of bullying and violence against GLBT youth.

It should be noted that the Alliance Defense Fund is responsible for this effort. A legal organization designed by Dobson and ilk to sue anyone who does not unequivocally bow to their brand of religious supremacism.

This about sums up their mentality - under their "hostile questions about Day of Truth":

4. Why are you focusing on this sin and ignoring all the others?

There is no irrelevant sin in the Bible. All sins are wicked in the eyes of God. The Bible is clear in its condemnation of adultery, false witness, theft, and murder, to name just a few. We are all sinners who deserve condemnation, and it is only because of the love and saving grace of Jesus Christ that we can be reconciled to our Father and have eternal life.

However, there is no organized activist movement that exists worldwide today to legalize and encourage theft, adultery, or lying. But there is a mobilized movement that challenges God’s truth on a daily basis with regard to homosexual behavior. That is why we are responding to yesterday’s “Day of Silence” to counter attempts to legitimize and promote homosexual behavior.

Clearly, their goal is to equate same-sex attraction, in and of itself, with the express desire to do harm.
It should also be noted that “God’s truth” defines the already legally-celebrated “sin” of remarriage, as being adulterous. This sin, however, is of no consequence to them, and to that extent, neither is "God's truth."

Jame’s Dobson’s-Focus on the Family’s-Exodus International’s Mike Ensley pens several articles on the Day of Truth website, one of which includes this gem:

From their "What if I’m Still Struggling" article:

As a single guy who continues to experience h same-sex attractions, these questions matter a heck of a lot to me. The world around me would say, "You're still gay and nothing can change it! Accepting it is the only thing that will make you happy." But, my faith in God's Word-as well as my conviction and my personal experience-tell me otherwise.

In response to DOS and the “Allies too” campaign-held in the fall, Exodus has produced a DVD called “Truth and Tolerance,” in which Mike Ensley of Exodus repeats the above admission:

Do I still feel, homosexual attractions? Um, yeah. What do I think that means though? A lot of people would say, that means you’re still gay, that means you haven’t changed. Um, I don’t think that’s true, I think that is simply the result of, you know, I had a lot of pain in my life, and a lot of unmet needs that became sexualized, during really crucial formative years in my life, and, that isn’t just undone, in a therapy session, or in a week long retreat, and there’s no magic words for that. It’s just, I’m going to feel that to some degree, for a long time.

This is essentially the entirety of what Dobson/ADF/Exodus’ Day of Truth is promoting as the be all end all solution to same-gender attraction: to just, only, and merely believe that your same sex attraction is wrong bad and evil. And then shut the hell up about it. In Jesus’ name of course.

[Emproph]

From Wayne Besen:

Lance Bass PSA for Day of Silence (:30)

[tymejumper]

Looked at the "day of truth" video. I also went to the website and looked at the FAQ both hostile and general. I must say, I have not had such a good laugh for a long time. I find the whole Focus on the family a very sad and pathetic thing. It is sad that they are so scared of us, that they will use Gods words against anyone whom they find not "up to snuff". THe only ones with an agenda here is them.

On a brighter note, I explained to my curious 8 year old about the day the silence and then the day of truth. She said it all "that's just plain mean" A little child shall lead them.......

[Zerbie]

I tell ya! Yes, it is just mean. I feel ill referring to the name of their action, because just saying its name, I feel like I am lying.

Mailed letters today to some of the school officials in my area. Don't expect the outcome to change much, but it will make known that people in the community are watching and expect tolerance and fairness to prevail. Or at least, one person! Hopefully, others are contacting the school district as well!

[HarmlessEccentric]

A student group at my school is planning to observe the day of silence; it hasn't been done at my school before, as far as I know, and I'm very curious to see what happens. I'm the teacher, and some of my students are VERY homophobic- I've gotten a taste of what they say about me behind my back, and it's pretty tough stuff to shake off. But I'll still put a statement on the board that I'm supporting those students who have decided to be silent; they need to know that they have support from their teachers, because there are too many people, students and teachers, who won't be shy about their opposition to the cause.

It's kind of hard to be silent yourself when you are the teacher...

[WarrenSensei]

The whole "ex-gay" thing bothers me so much!
My college will have at least a few people participating in the Day of Silence, since the Pride Alliance has been promoting it. But the school itself, despite having a number of lgbt staff members and of course student, and being in Massachusetts, doesn't seem to have a clue about us! The school's Diversity Office still thinks its only purpose is centered on race issues, and believes that being gay is a choice.

And yet all the science says not only is it not a choice, it can't be changed and trying can mess you up.

It is so clear that God doesn't work the way the "ex-gay" concept believes God does... and yet they persist. I hate stupid people.
~Warren