National Day of Silence

Friday, April 17, 2009, marks the GLSEN's 13th annual National Day of Silence. Hundreds of thousands of students are expected to participate. The day will bring attention to all those students who have been harassed, tormented and bullied because of their sexual orientation.

An 11-year old student, Carl Walker-Hoover, from Springfield, Massachusetts took his own life on April 6, 2009 when he could no longer endure the harassment and bullying at school. On February 12, 2008, A 15-year old student, Larry King, in Oxnard, California was shot in the head twice by another student because of his sexual orientation.

Luckily I've never endured harassment for my sexual orientation in school and I could only imagine how difficult it must be for gay students who do. To learn more about the National Day of Silence, visit the official website here.

– Andy

4 thoughts on “National Day of Silence

  1. Am i the only one who doesnt get it.
    The tagline to the website states “What are you going to do to break the silence?”
    I dont get the point they’re trying to make by STAYING silent for a day? I thought thats the opposite to what the whole point of the day is meant to represent?
    Breaking the silence by staying silent? :S

  2. However poignant the alleged irony, the symbolism of this day of silence is still stupid! Silence won’t bring any attention to anyone other than the fact that a few loudmouths are going to be uncharacteristically quiet for a day….whoopee.
    Where’s the ACLU? We need to protect these students, and hold those individuals, administrators, and those in our government accountable?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.