For the past few years, the anti-LGBT organization Focus on the Family has been trying to rebrand the event once known as the Day Of Truth so that it seems much less dogmatic than it was when it was controlled by the "ex-gay" organization Exodus International. This cosmetic change is reflected in the new name that Focus on the Family gave its event: Day of Dialogue.
To commemorate the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network's (GLSEN) Day of Silence, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth and allies worked to raise awareness about anti-LGBT bullying by not speaking. You can see some of the media coverage of the Day of Silence below.
Day of Silence begs the question: What will you do to end the silence? This is an important probe, especially when it comes to LGBT young people of color, as it asks for a unified front to battle the discrimination and bullying that LGBT youth endure in the school environment. Their safety and academic success is at risk due to fear of bullying and harassment.
An openly gay Ohio teen has filed a lawsuit against his high school for refusing to allow him to wear a t-shirt featuring a rainbow-colored fish and the words “Jesus is Not a Homophobe.” Maverick Couch first wore the t-shirt, and was told to remove it, during last year’s Day of Silence, a campaign organized by GLSEN to bring awareness to the silencing of LGBT students through bullying and harassment.
More than 1,500 New Yorkers gathered today in Manhattan to mourn the death of a 32 year-old gay man, who was shot down on Friday just blocks away from the historic Stonewall Inn in an apparent act of anti-gay bias.
