The Queer-Straight Alliance will be having a crowd demonstration on April 14, 2011. The demonstrations will be part of a three hour demonstration that the club will be putting on in the quad.

Day of Silence is an event sponsored by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network. The National Day of Silence is observed throughout the country, by students who are, for lack of a better term, speaking out for Lesbian Gay Bi-sexual Transgender bullying in schools. Through their demonstrations they hope to generate more awareness for their cause.

One of the more often seen demonstrations is the “chalk” outlines that will be spread throughout the campus. The meaning behind the outlines is that the outlines are members of the LGBT community that are remembered as victims of acts of bullying and hate.

“I helped put down some of the body outlines, ” co-advisor Martha Dixon said. “Even as we were laying them down, people were stopping to read them, I think they are tremendously effective in getting attention focused on the hate crimes against persons in the LGBT community,”

The Day of Silence will be going on in the quad from 12 to 2 p.m. during which there will be silent scenes and tables with information on the group and the meaning of the day.

At 1:15 p.m. the club, along with any students who want to join in, will lead a silent march through the school, onto Viking, up Viking on to Contra Costa, down Contra Costa, back down Golf Club, and back to the Student Union Building at 2 to 3 p.m. where there will be a Breaking the Silence Party in the Student Union Club Room.

“Every time I hear someone say, ‘That’s so gay,’ I stop and ask what they mean by that. It’s never a reference to homosexuality literally,” QSA co-advisor Lisa Orta. . “I hope the Day of Silence will at least silence the slur and encourage people to really listen to what they are saying.”