!e Day of Silence is over 17 years old at Wilmington Friends School. !is day is a day of action for the LGBTQIA+ community and their allies. Students who wish to take a vow of silence don rain- bow ribbons. !is means that they do not speak at all during the school day. Usually, under 10 students in the upper school participate in this form of non-violent pro- test. Many people who support the movement will wear purple ribbons to show their approval. According to the GLSEN (Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network), the Day of Silence is “a day of action in which stu- dents across the country vow to take a form of silence to call attention to the silencing e”ect of anti-LGBT bullying and harassment in schools. !e silence echoes that silence which is caused by anti-LGBT bullying, name-calling, and harass- ment. Ending the silence is the #rst step toward building awareness and making a commitment to address these injustices.” Wilmington Friends has always been in support of this non-vi- olent day of action unless it interferes with a preexisting class discussion or presentation. In these cases, some kids will take o” the ribbon for that speci#c class and put it on a$er pre- senting but in the past, some kids will refuse and take the failing grade– fur- ther showing their dedication to the cause. !e students who chose to remain silent said that they found their classes to be harder because they couldn’t contribute when they wanted to but they found it much harder to stay silent when with their friends or seeing people in the hallway. !e places where it is hardest to stay silent are the places where Queer voices are most essential, and this day shows what voices would be lost to the WFS community if there were any threat to their existence. !is is a powerful day and o$en brings the community closer as people come together to support those who choose to remain si- lent during the day. Whether it be allowing time for those who are staying silent to write on a piece of paper or allowing their friends to send messages that they want to be said out loud. Elliott Stanko ‘24 participated in the day of silence and said, “During the Day of Silence, whenev- er I’d really want to say something or get frustrated that I didn’t have a voice, I real- ized the signi#cance of my silence: I was representing those who truly had their voices taken from them.” Kathleen Martin, US College Guidance counselor and Facul- ty Sponsor of the Gender Sexuality Alliance mentioned in an interview that in the upcoming years, there may be multiple days of action: A day of silence and a day of not silence. !e latter would be a day where activists would protest loudly against the many anti-LGBTQIA+ legislation being passed all over the nation and force- fully inform the student body of these horri#c and life-threatening bills.