The Middlebury Campus

Issue date: 5/1/08 Section: Features

Media Credit: Nicolas Sohl A student taking a pledge of silence in support of closeted GLBTQ students wears his convictions on his t-shirt sleeve. [Click to enlarge]

Students were not speaking up in class on April 25th, but it was not because they had forgone the night's reading. Instead, participants of the National Day of Silence were making a statement that spoke louder than words.

The day is a national event, honored by over 6,500 high schools and colleges across the United States. The movement began at the University of Virginia in 1996 and a different person has received a dedication each year. This year, the Day of Silence was held in memory of eighth-grader Lawrence King, who was killed because he was a homosexual.

The Middlebury Open Queer Alliance (MOQA) has sponsored this significant day in April for several years. Co-President of MOQA Ryan Tauriainen '08 said was happy to report that the number of Middlebury students that participated in the event grows each year, with this one being no exception.

"I have not always been the outspoken activist that I am now," Tauriainen said. "I was once 'silenced' - that is, in the closet. Many young people feel as if they cannot be honest with themselves and with the world. I can remember how painful it was to live in shame and I want to make others aware of the silence that I once went through, and of the fact that so many others are currently suffering."

Co-President of MOQA Chelsea Guster '11 has participated in the Day of Silence in her hometown for the past three years. As a first-year student, she was excited to lend her experience and devotion to the project to the Middlebury community.

"In high school, it was a great way to stand up for a cause I believed in, and continues to be such at Middlebury," said Guster. "As a member of the GLBTQ community, I think participating in the Day of Silence is a simple and effective way to think about, and make others think about, the prejudices we face both on a larger scale and in daily life."

MOQA hoped that a range of students, faculty and staff - regardless of their sexual orientation - would participate in the Day of Silence.

Continued...

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