More than 30 students gathered in the EMU amphitheater Wednesday afternoon to march to South Eugene High School for the Day of Silence rally. Many of the students were members of the University’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer Alliance.
The students stood quietly, many with red tape Xs over their mouths, others with duct tape across their lips. Many wore small signs stating that they were participating in the Day of Silence. They held up signs reading “Silence = Death” and “What will you do?” as they lined up in pairs to march to the high school.
The rally was for local high school students and drew participants from six different schools. Some University students who attended the rally hope to formulate a coalition between the organizations involved.
“Today has been intense,” said Sheldon High School junior Kenda Pitetti. “There was a little bit of opposition from teachers but we had a really good reception from students.”
“No matter where you are in the school system you are still fighting the same oppression,” said Jet, a Lane Community College student, who uses only one name. “They are fighting similar oppression that I fight on a daily basis in my college classroom. I am going to show solidarity.”
The Day of Silence is a nine-year-old project that started with more than 150 students on the University of Virginia campus in 1996. The project has grown since then and has become a Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network project in collaboration with the United States Student Association.
The event is student-led. The silence represents the suppression that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people and their allies experience on a daily basis from discrimination, prejudice and harassment. Students participating in the Day of Silence gave out fliers that explained why they weren’t speaking.
“Please understand my reasons for not speaking today… My deliberate silence echoes that silence, which is caused by harassment, prejudice, and discrimination,” the flier read.
“It lets people stop to think about what it means that people are being silent,” University senior Maceo Perrson said.
Speakers at the rally included Eugene Mayor Kitty Piercy, Elise Self, co-chairwoman of Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, and various student leaders. There was an open mic at the event to give participants an opportunity to discuss their experiences.
“It was a good walk,” University senior Ryan Minor said of the march to the high school. “Some people honked; I didn’t hear anything
negative really.”
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