Friday, April 17, 2015

UIS students participate in National Day of Silence

Some University of Illinois Springfield students are breaking the silence on the issue of bullying for youth who are marginalized, undocumented, or have disabilities.

It's called Day of Silence. It's a national day of action where students take a vow of silence to represent the silencing effect of anti-lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender bullying and harassment in schools.

UIS broadened the event to also include undocumented citizens, differently-abled and minorities.

After not speaking all day, the students broke their silence at an event earlier tonight. Students shared stories from youth across the country who have been bullied. They also discussed their experiences and what they learned after spending the day without a voice.

"It's been really nice to see people talk across different lines of difference and begin to think about sort of the trials and tribulations of youth across a number of spectrums," said Kerry Poynter, Executive Director of the Diversity Center at UIS.

This story appeared online on Foxillinois.com on April 16, 2015.

Watch the story online.