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LOCAL YOUTH PARTICIPATE IN NATIONAL DAY OF SILENCE
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Gay Straight Student Alliances and community members gather to reflect

White Plains, NY, March 15, 2004. Gay, lesbian, bisexual and straight youth from Westchester County, along with college students and community members, will assemble at the Crowne Plaza Hotel on Wednesday, April 21, 2004 to participate in the 3rd annual Breaking the Silence event. Sponsored by GLSEN (Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network) Hudson Valley and Center Lane, a program of the Westchester Jewish Community Services, the two-hour event, which follows the National Day of Silence, will allow participants to “speak out,” breaking their self-imposed silence, and reflect with one another about their observance of the day.

The National Day of Silence, a project of GLSEN National, in collaboration with the United States Student Association (USSA), is a student-led day of action where those who support making anti-LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) bias unacceptable in schools take a day-long vow of silence to recognize and protest the discrimination and harassment – in effect, the silencing – experienced by LGBT students and their allies. Over the past seven years, hundreds of schools across the country have started realizing the importance of the inclusion of sexual orientation and gender identity in harassment policies. Breaking the Silence is an event dedicated to educating the public about anti-gay harassment in high schools and colleges by providing an opportunity for personal testimony and self-expression through dramatic art, poetry, and prose.

This year, over 150 youth, representing over 15 local high schools, are expected to attend, along with college students from SUNY Purchase, Westchester Community College, Mercy College, and Sarah Lawrence College. County officials, school administrators, and other community members will also join to support the local youth as they participate in this national movement.

“I still can’t get over the number of participants this year,” said Center Lane Program Director,
Sara Braun. “Last year we gathered about 100 students at the Loft to hold Breaking the Silence. This year, our numbers have nearly doubled!”

Thomas Miller, a social worker at Center Lane, along with a list of other volunteers, has held weekly workshops and activities at Center Lane to prepare for the event. Gay Straight Alliances (GSA) from multiple schools in Westchester county have met over the past three months to discuss, plan, and share their thoughts and ideas about the day. One student member of the GSA at Rye High School said: “We all have to be on the same page so that we can present a unified front to battle anti-gay harassment. We have to show that we believe in change and in the protection of all students. For us, that means pointing out the obvious and not-so-obvious discriminations and harassments against LGBT students in a peaceful, powerful way…and then telling our story.”

Center Lane and GLSEN work together on community and high school projects and workshops, such as No Name Calling Day and Healing the Hurt Conference.

Conceived, founded, and administered by professionals from the lesbian and gay community, Center Lane is a program of Westchester Jewish Community Services. It is the only community center in Westchester for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and questioning adolescents ages 14-21.

Westchester Jewish Community Services, Inc. is Westchester’s oldest, most comprehensive, licensed multi-service agency. The agency provides a wide range of clinical and community-based mental health and counseling programs, home health services, assistance with learning difficulties and services for people with developmental disabilities. WJCS is committed to helping children, adults and families who live or work in Westchester County.

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