Image: GLSEN
Day of Silence logo
This year the LGBTQ Day of Silence falls on April 14. Established in 1996, the LGBTQ Day of Silence intended to confront the culture of bullying LGBTQ students in the nation’s schools. Its strategy is to change the culture of bullying through creating awareness using silence as its tactic.
As the movement began, due to the unfettered culture of bullying and harassment, LGBTQ students experienced higher rates of emotional trauma and psychological stress than their straight peers. They also had significantly higher rates of suicide. While the impact of the Day of Silence may be difficult to measure, for students who identify as LGBTQ there has been progress. Through the efforts of supportive teachers and school districts, the creation of gay-straight alliances has made significant strides in confronting bullying and rallying support for diversity. In Milwaukee, the Alliance School, a Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) charter school, was founded in 2005 specifically to create a safe learning environment for LGBTQ and other bullied students. Today it thrives as a national model, garnering numerous awards and national press coverage over its near two decade history.
Perhaps in part due to the Alliance School’s success, bullying actually seems to be on the wane throughout MPS schools. According to my inside informer in the guise of a Gen Z friend, the bullying of those who identify as or appear to be LGBTQ didn’t occur when he was an MPS student. Rather, he explained, one might be bullied for one’s choice of footwear or apparel, but not for being LGBTQ. In fact, queer kids were more likely to be among the cool crowd than not.
Supportive Environments
The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction has also recognized the problem of bullying and has published recommendations defining the means by which schools can provide supportive environments for LGBTQ students. In fact, as part of a student anti-discrimination statute, Wisconsin public schools were to institute general anti-bullying policies by 2010.
However, while these efforts would seem to be an enlightened and logical solution to the problem, they have not succeeded in conservative-controlled school districts where local policies have managed to circumvent them. As a result, institutional bullying has replaced the random student variety, elevating the practice to a political strategy.
Unfortunately, throughout Wisconsin (and throughout the country), specifically where local school administrations and boards are entirely conservative, bullying, rather than being discouraged, is, in fact encouraged by their own policies. Ironically, some school boards have been taken over by acts of bullying, intimidation and death threats made against more liberal thinking members. Gaslighting tactics also helps bring out the MAGA mob at both school board meetings and elections. School district administrations and school boards such as those in Waukesha, Hartland, and Kettle Moraine, acting on behalf of extremist Republican politicians and political entities like the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty (WILL), have created policies that broadly oppress any expression of what they deem “divisive.”
Considered divisive and forbidden under these policies are symbols and signage related to LGBTQ identity, Black Lives Matter, sectarian beliefs or what is vaguely called “selfish propaganda.” Speaking of selfish propaganda, the Kettle Moraine School Superintendent Stephen Plum indicated a small cross worn as jewelry would be permitted. Curiously, the stated exception was for the Christian cross. In other words, neither Jewish nor Muslim religious symbols, nor, apparently, a Neapolitan cornicello charm, would be acceptable. Meanwhile, book bans in school libraries target subject matter relevant to LGBTQ students and those of color.
Buttressing the culture war against LGBTQ students have been efforts by even higher authorities to crush and deny their identities. Throughout the country, including Wisconsin, state legislatures are currently considering 450 anti-LGBTQ bills, many targeting trans youth. Florida’s war on “wokeness” and Tennessee’s recent law banning drag appearances where children are present (as in Pride events) and forcing youth in transition to “detransition“ portend things to come here in Wisconsin. In 2021, a Republican legislator introduced a bill targeting trans students. In a seemingly coordinated attack, the Archdiocese of Milwaukee hopped on the anti-LGBTQ hate bandwagon issuing an anti-trans decree in January of 2022. Meanwhile, in January of this year, a statewide ban on conversion therapy for minors was rejected by a Republican dominated committee.
One could go on and on with similar examples of hysterical gaslighting by the MAGA mob, contriving non-existing threats within the nation’s educational system to white Christian patriarchy like critical race theory, trans issues (by the way, transgender people represent a fraction of 1% of the population), and the “woke” agenda (aka social justice advocacy). Suffice it to say, as a result, bullying today is less a matter of individual students harassing LGBTQ classmates but rather of the institutions themselves, from the pulpit to the halls of government, acting as the bullies.
So perhaps on this year’s LGBTQ Day of Silence the question should be raised, if under the circumstance, the silent treatment is still a valid response to bullying. A recent social media post recalled the days of the Stonewall uprising and suggested it may again be time for the LGBTQ community to pick up bricks. Meanwhile, at this point, with our LGBTQ speech being gagged, we might heed Mahatma Gandhi when he said, “Speak only if improves upon the silence.” It’s certainly time for improvement.
