By Celeste Eback, Website Editor 

On May 2, SPA (Saegertown Pride Alliance) participated in a day of silence, consisting of four total student participants.

The Day of Silence is a GLSEN student-led national demonstration, to protest the harassment and bullying LGBTQIA+ youth face on a day-to-day basis. This movement started with two college students in the mid 90’s. Over time, this inflated and reached far more students. Every April, students go silent for the entire school day without talking. After the school day is over, there’s events that allow the students to share their experiences from the day.

This event is usually hosted on a selected date in April. However, SPA organized their own day in May due to set-backs. Despite this, the club still managed to coordinate a time and hosted their own.

“I feel like it went very well,” SPA President Zorian Edwards (he/they) said, “Definitely more planned out than previous year.” Edwards wasn’t alone in this movement, “I think it went fantastic!” Senior Neo Bishop (he/they) said, “I could tell from both the positive and negative comments. It made an impact. It was not difficult to keep my silence.” 

The club has faced its fair share of struggles this school year. Their advisor, Mrs. Hetrick is no longer available to manage the club. Finding time to meet has been difficult and the way the club is being managed has changed drastically compared to the previous school year, however the club is still persistent. “Our club has been struggling since Mrs. Hetrick left the high school,” Edwards said, “So it was amazing to have a sense of unity in the club, even if it was only four people.”