cover image: Glsen’s Educator Advisory Council’s Guide for Rising Up & Taking Action for Day of (No) Silence 2024

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Glsen’s Educator Advisory Council’s Guide for Rising Up & Taking Action for Day of (No) Silence 2024

2024

GLSEN’s Day of (No) Silence is a student-led demonstration where LGBTQ+ students and their allies protest the discrimination of LGBTQ+ people in schools. Protest comes with risks. Effective advocacy requires assessing these risks to ensure principled solidarity. [...] The unique experiences of EAC members teaching in both LGBTQ+ supportive and hostile climates have shaped the guidance offered here. [...] We know certain environments can pose significant threats to the well-being of supportive educators. Two things are true at the same time: your visibility as an LGBTQ+ supportive educator is crucial for students, and simultaneously, your safety matters. • Sign up for Day of (No) Silence updates and resources! • Connect with LGBTQ+ supportive educators in your area on GLSEN’s secure digital platf [...] Expand it with three more books! Encourage Student-led Clubs & Advocacy Even in the most hostile places, if a public school allows any extracurricular student-led clubs, they must allow students to start an LGBTQ+ focused club as well. [...] The Equal Access Act of 1984 guarantees students the right to form a GSA (Gay Straight Alliance or Gender Sexuality Alliance) or any other type of LGBTQI+ student-initiated club and have it be recognized and treated the same as any other non-curricular student clubs. • If your school already has a GSA, ask student leaders how you can support their group, foster their advocacy skills, & share [...] • If your school refuses to recognize a student-initiated GSA, consider sharing this letter from the ACLU with school leadership. [...] Inclusive policies reduce the likelihood that an LGBTQ+ person’s rights are violated and make clear what someone can do to remedy the situation if there is a violation. [...] Ask administrators or local union leaders to post in work spaces how employees can file a discrimination complaint with the federal government • If you witnessed or heard about discrimination against a student, you can file a complaint with your school or district’s Title IX Civil Rights Coordinator, or directly with the U.S. Department of Education. [...] • Every educator has the power to make their school more inclusive for BIPOC youth, LGBTQ+ youth, and disabled youth. [...] As a final note, we would urge any educator in a hostile environment to have an action plan in the event they experience retaliation for their LGBTQ+ solidarity.
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