On Friday, April 28th, Hingham High School was a little bit quieter. That morning, students walking into school couldn’t help but notice the chalk drawing outside, announcing Hingham High School’s Gay-Straight Alliance’s annual hosting of the Day of Silence. This annual event was created by GLSEN (Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network), a national organization that promotes LGBT awareness in classrooms from kindergarten to twelfth grade.

On Friday morning, GSA members stood in the lobby on Friday morning, handing out slips that participating students could hand to teachers and classmates, explaining why they were being quiet all day. The Day of Silence is driven by symbolism. Students who took part in the event did so to represent the struggle that LGBT+ peers feel on a daily basis, avoiding coming out to their peers and expressing themselves for fear of ostracism, harassment or bullying.

In years past, the participation in GLSEN’s Day of Silence has not extended past the GSA’s roster. This year however, a signup sheet in the counseling office held the names of over two dozen students, and according to club advisor Kevin Lalli, those are just the names of people who actually signed up, but there were still other students who participated without registering.

When asked for further comment, Mr Lalli felt that the Day of Silence was an important and “creative way to grab the attention of the student body and open up discussion about the atmosphere of Hingham High School. Even though acceptance of LGBT people has increased in our society, it can still be very difficult for a teenager to be confident enough to be open about who they are.”

In regard to the environment in Hingham High School, Mr. Lalli feels that “we’re fortunate that LGBT students are rarely openly harassed like in other schools, but even at HHS there are students who feel stress about opening up.” Mr. Lalli feels that the Day of Silence isn’t meant to be a lecture, but “a way of reminding everyone that they can do things to help make the school more comfortable for everyone. To this point, on the Day of Silence, the Gay-Straight Alliance tried to point out ways kids can be allies to their LGBt peers through a poster campaign.”

Lindsey Vogelmann, a sophomore and member of the GSA, feels that the Day of Silence, “ran pretty smoothly, even with the actual inconvenience of not speaking, but that only adds to the experience and to the greater sort of metaphor that it carries. I think the day was carried out with enthusiasm and pride in the activism that we were taking part in, which got other people informed and aware of the cause.”

Overall, 2017’s Day of Silence proved to be not only a successful endeavor in its own right, but a successful capstone to a year that, for Hingham’s Gay-Straight Alliance, has been marked by increased visibility and activism.