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Written by: Andrew Hodgson
On Friday, April 16, over 1,000 Bentley students observed the national Day of Silence. These students could be seen all over campus wearing the Day of Silence t-shirts to raise awareness for the harassment of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) communities across the nation.
When asked to describe the event, Dan Weidel, a representative of People Respecting Individuality and Diversity through Education (PRIDE) said, “It is done by a lot of universities and other colleges. It is meant to raise awareness in the prejudices that people in the LGBT community are exposed to.”
This is the first year the Day of Silence, an event that has been taking place at Bentley since 2002, involved donations. The donations collected by the event are going to a charity called The Trevoy Project, discovered by the PRIDE e-board. “Basically what they do is help suicide prevention for LGBT youth,” continued Weidel.
However, the day is about more than just material donations. PRIDE representative Elizabeth Sisson added, “We understand that people are not going to be silent all day, but it just means a lot that people wear these shirts today and will continue to wear them around campus. Everyone wears them with pride.”
The t-shirts, which feature a design that came from a design contest held by PRIDE, were a point of enthusiasm. “These are amazing t-shirts this year,” Sisson continued.
The day’s events proved to be an overall success for PRIDE. Friday culminated in the Back Bay at 5:00 p.m. in the “Breaking the Silence” dinner. PRIDE members celebrated the success of the day with many students and faculty attending, including President Gloria Larson.
The dinner concluded in a few humble words from Weidel, who thanked all who helped to make this day possible. Sisson echoed his sentiment, “It is just remarkable. There are really no words to describe it.”
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