OLLU joined countless other colleges and universities across the nation this week in “Day of Silence” activities.

The “Day of Silence” is held annually to raise awareness for anti-gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (GLBT) discrimination, bullying, harassment, and other hate crimes that occur on school campuses across the nation each year.

“Hate crimes awareness statistics show that GLBT youth are harassed at school as much as 30 times in one day,” Naomi Brown, OLLU student event organizer, said. “If children are not safe in school, if they are forced to be silent at home and in society they are forced to act out as a way of screaming. These behaviors cause and increase the rate of suicide among GLBT youth.”

This year marked the first year that the Lake has chosen to take part in the “Day of Silence.” The “Break the Silence” event was held on April 18 in the Mall Courtyard. Speakers included: Eric Alva (national spokesperson for the Human Rights Campaign), Maria Antoinetta Barriozabal (first Chicana elected to the San Antonio City Council and now active in the Esperanza Peace and Justice Center), Antonia Castaneda (Chicana feminist historian), Yvonne Jonas (president of the Parents, Family, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays San Antonio chapter), Ruth Nagle-Pinkham (lesbian mother featured in Texas Monthly’s March issue), the Trevino family (gay fathers featured on the “Oprah” show in January), and Nicky Valdez (from DignitySA, a local organization that advocates for gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgenders within the Catholic Church).

Students were encouraged to attend the “Day of Dialogue” event held the following day on April 19. The event was a follow-up to the National Day of Silence where students were given the opportunity to discuss the events of the previous day and the perspectives and reactions that arose from it.

Students who signed up to participate in the event received a rainbow sash to wear throughout the day to show their support against hate crimes on the GLBT community.

“I think when we step beyond tolerance we truly learn to embrace the diversity that is the human race,” Brown said. “We’ve become very judgmental. I think college is a time for exploration and stepping outside of the box. We owe it to ourselves to think beyond our world and empathize with all humankind.”