Pictured #1 Radical Cheerleaders. #2 Chicago Gay Youth Dancers #3 Marsha Jackson, and #4 Andres del los Santos at the Night of Noise. Photos by Andrew Davis
The roar was undeniably loud—and undeniably empowering.
At 6 p.m. April 13 at the State of Illinois Building, 100 W. Randolph, several hundred students and supporters ended their Day of Silence by starting the Night of Noise Rally.
The Day, a project of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network ( GLSEN ) in collaboration with the United States Student Association, is a national time of action that is expressed through verbal inaction. The first Day started at the University of Virginia in 1996.
Students and allies do not speak in order to recognize and protest the bias and harassment that LGBT students and their supporters face.
According to GLSEN Chicago's Web site, the stance 'also allows us to reflect upon how powerful silencing can be, to focus on how we can make our own voices stronger, and to begin to stop silencing ourselves.'
The rally was a chance for those who shared the Day of Silence to break the quietness together. The attendees did so in a way that was both celebratory and informative. The event featured testimonials, speeches, and loads of entertainment.
Among the speakers was Richard Rykhus, the recently appointed executive director of GLSEN Chicago. Rykhus started off by talking about the proliferation of gay-straight alliances, which went from zero as recently as 10 years ago to more than 65 in the Chicago area today.
'I [ also ] want to acknowledge you for the courage you have ... for speaking up when it's not safe to speak up. I want to acknowledge you all for being leaders in your schools. You're teaching people how to make your schools safer, but you're also teaching GLSEN Chicago what we need to do to drive our mission forward. Most of all I want to acknowledge you for the future ... what you're doing today as grassroots activists is really making our world a better place and I think that's phenomenal,' he told the crowd.
Nora Flanagan, a teacher at Chicago's Lane Tech High School, spoke as an adult ally. 'I'm straight. I don't have any gay siblings or best friends—but I feel undeniably attached to the issue of gay, lesbian, and transgender rights because the 'we' at issue here is anybody who refuses to turn away from the civil-rights battle of our generation. The fight for racial equality made its first indelible mark in our schools in 1955 and that's where this one is going to have to start as well,' she said.
Flanagan also commented on her fears: 'I'm scared. I'm scared that states ... are jumping to vote down the possibility of marital equality. I'm scared that the issue seemed to dominate our presidential election during a war. And I'm really scared that the Alabama legislature is trying to ban any reference to homosexuality in their public libraries.' She also stated that there are teachers and administrators who are committed to making schools safer for everyone, although that is not currently true of all of them. 'Schools should be training teachers about tolerance and on issues of gender identity and sexuality,' she said.
Also, for the first time, Chicago Public Schools ( CPS ) issued a statement to the students. In the response, Chief Education Officer Barbara Eason-Watkins congratulated the students for helping to make the school system 'one where all students are emotionally and physically safe enough to reach their full academic potential.' She also reaffirmed the commitment of CPS to make the system one where LGBT individuals can 'feel safe enough to focus on what matters most—learning.'
In addition, Eason-Watkins mentioned how CPS is collaborating with organizations such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to monitor youths' actions to 'better inform our policy and procedures.' Lastly, the statement touted CPS's commitment to 'creating a transparent system of accountability [ regarding ] our non-discrimination policy' by discussing the appointment of a new human relations officer as well as the 1997 additions of sexual orientation and gender identity to said policy.
The entertainment, which encompassed several genres, never failed to excite the crowd. Acts included DJ Casper; the Radical Cheerleaders; the About Face Youth Theatre; the Chicago Gay Youth Dance Troupe; spoken word poets Aaron and Acire; and drag king extraordinare Andres del los Santos ( a.k.a. Aurora Pineda ) .
The lone figure who may not have been entertained by the goings-on was Illinois Family Institute executive director Peter LaBarbera, who may have stood relatively far from the other attendees but who still attracted attention from several pro-LGBT individuals. LaBarbera told Windy City Times that he attended the rally because 'we believe that there needs to be another side presented to the Day of Silence. The Day of Silence is pushing one side ... and is infringing on the rights of those who don't agree with the gay-rights agenda. We believe it's politicizing the schools.'
According to several news sources, approximately half a million people participated in this year's Day of Silence.
Also on April 13, GLSEN launched The Teach Respect campaign, which aims to inform and inspire Americans to address the serious problems of anti-LGBT name-calling, bullying and harassment that affect all students. The campaign will use public service announcements in print media and radio to raise awareness. The announcements can be viewed and heard on a re-launched educational Web site, www.TeachRespect.com .