The Student News Site of Neshaminy High School

The Playwickian

The Student News Site of Neshaminy High School

The Playwickian

The Student News Site of Neshaminy High School

The Playwickian

Neshaminy students take pledge against anti-LGBT actions

By Nina Taranenko
Staff Writer

Ally Week is a national youth-led effort empowering students to be allies in the fight against anti-LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) bullying, harassment and name-calling in K-12 schools. This year it will take place from April 7 to April 11, on which Friday April, 11 also happens to be Day of Silence.

It began in October of 2005 by Joe Montana and other youth members of the organization called GLSEN (gay, lesbian and straight education network). Ally Week is dedicated to teach everybody to not discriminate against the LGBT community and not to use hateful slurs.

Ally Week at Neshaminy began in 2006. The Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA for short) is the club in charge of Ally week. The advisor of GSA is English teacher Sean Daly. Now Ally week is usually in held in Sept. or Oct., which coincides with National Coming out Day, Oct. 11, and Oct. is also LGBT history month. But at NHS they make it the same week as Day of Silence.

Story continues below advertisement

Day of Silence, once again set up by GLSEN, is an annual day to take action to stop the bullying and harassment of the LGBT community.

During Ally Week students are encouraged to sign a pledge saying that they will “take a stand for a safe and harassment-free school for all students” This will be handed out by all English teachers on Monday. No student will be forced to sign it. Pledges will be signed on Tuesday April 8th.

Although kids who do sign are warned to not put fake names, slurs or rip the cards and to not also make fun of anybody who does sign the card. “People that signed the card were usually labeled as being ‘gay’, when they really just wanted to support the cause, in the past we didn’t have many but just last year we had around 500 pledges,” Daly said.

Many kids feel scared to sign the cards or even go to GSA for the fear that they will be judged or made fun of. It’s a great thing here at Neshaminy that the school board doesn’t discriminate against sexuality or gender. Ally Week means different things to different people. To Daly it means, “A time to bring attention to the hateful terms and slurs people use on a daily basis.”

More to Discover
Activate Search
The Student News Site of Neshaminy High School
Neshaminy students take pledge against anti-LGBT actions