Day of Silence
- Thread starter MendedEmber
- Start date
Lobar
The hell am I reading, here?
So what more important things will you be fighting for that day?
Ad Hoc
Some old guy
I'll not be participating today either, but I'm curious this as well. Folks keep mentioning these more important things, and surely some of them are in fact more important, but not mentioning exactly what they'll be doing about those more important things. It seems to me that a little effort toward a smaller issue is better than no effort toward any issue.
EDIT: Herp derp, I actually will be participating today, sort of. Not in the silence thing, but there's an anti-bullying rally down at the UW-Madion campus with a big LGBT bent, which I will be attending. Forgot that it was today.
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Thatch
Still not at 10k posts
You probably snored too :V
HyBroMcYenapants
STEVE HARVEY = HOMOSEXUAL
Eh.
Thatch
Still not at 10k posts
I thought the whole point of it was to be silent in spite of everyone and everything?
It doesn't really mean anything if you're silent when no one expects you to speak anyway.
Enwon
Nihilistic Atheist
I didn't participate. I thought about it, and decided that I'd rather talk and have fun and enjoy my Friday. I'm a very cynical person, and felt that it wouldn't make a difference. Though I did see people who had taped their mouths shut. And I almost, with a few other people, used it as an excuse to not participate in Spanish class.
Commiecomrade
Maximum Awesome.
Damn, I forgot it.
At least no one will think I'm gay.
At least no one will think I'm gay.
Corto
Member
This is retarded.
Don't get me wrong, I'm all for supporting gay rights, but this absolutely the stupidest way to show your support for it. It's like that "put a picture of a cartoon in facebook to end child abuse" thing, except stupider because you can't communicate WHAT it is you are protesting and it actually impairs your daily life.
Don't be so daft. "More important things" does not imply he's got a scheduled protest about starvation in Africa or politics or some such shit on the same day. Maybe, just maybe, he's got a job or classes or a social life or something else really important that means he can't play mime for a whole day. This isnt a little effort, like wearing a badge. Talking is something normal people do all day long. It's how we communicate.
EDIT: Not to sound so much as an asshole, let me clarify: I support gay rights, and if you want to shut up for a whole day to show your support for them, then good for you, but I think there are about a million better ways to do so.
Don't get me wrong, I'm all for supporting gay rights, but this absolutely the stupidest way to show your support for it. It's like that "put a picture of a cartoon in facebook to end child abuse" thing, except stupider because you can't communicate WHAT it is you are protesting and it actually impairs your daily life.
Don't be so daft. "More important things" does not imply he's got a scheduled protest about starvation in Africa or politics or some such shit on the same day. Maybe, just maybe, he's got a job or classes or a social life or something else really important that means he can't play mime for a whole day. This isnt a little effort, like wearing a badge. Talking is something normal people do all day long. It's how we communicate.
EDIT: Not to sound so much as an asshole, let me clarify: I support gay rights, and if you want to shut up for a whole day to show your support for them, then good for you, but I think there are about a million better ways to do so.
FoxPhantom
New Member
I'll try and be silent, but since I will be going to work it might be tricky. (meaning: I will need to say something if a customer comes up and asks me.)
Catilda Lily
May all your bacon burn.
I failed. I said an answer in class because no one was getting it even though we had just talked about it two days before.
Ad Hoc
Some old guy
I'll not hold it against a person for tending to their personal needs, first. My comment was mostly directed at the sentiment that there are more important things to be concerned with than gay rights, which as expressed several times in the thread. As someone in gay relationship who has been hurt for it considerably, I have to disagree that there are no problems; as a rational person I do have to concede that there are worse things in the world, but at the same time, what are these "I'm not going to fight for LGBT rights because there are worse things to worry about" people actually doing about those worse things? Or is it just a convenient excuse to do nothing?
As for the effectiveness of the Day of Silence, well, I'm a Wisconsin boy. I know a bit about protesting loudly. I was in those crowds about every other day for the weeks and weeks they went on, and had sore lungs for it. I can tell you that it's only nominally more effective than being quiet, perhaps with a little pin or sign to explain yourself (not difficult to do, many of the Day of Silencers have discussed it)--it may actually be less effective in some situations. Tens of thousands of people howling for change can leave an impression; a lone person or just a few people howling look crazy. You can say that protests in general are worthless, and that we should just be sending letters to politicians, corporations, etc.,--but that only works for on-the-books things like DADT, DOMA, and hiring practices. There's only so much a senator or Target CEO can do about school bullying, about the parents who disown their gay child. For that, you need to directly address the general population, even if that just means getting them to think about it. Since most people can't really do that all day erryday, that's why many choose to concentrate their efforts on a particular rally, protest, or, if they don't have a crowd to be with, a individual action like the Day of Silence. Personally, I'd go for a shirt, pin, or small sign about the issue instead of silence; but they can (probably should) do that too in addition to the silence, so whatever floats their boat.
I have to admit I appreciate the symbolism behind it. When I go out around people, they talk about their spouses, their boy/girlfriends, their crushes, their dates, and so on, all the time. I can't, not without becoming an instant controversy. I do talk about it sometimes just because if we don't, it will never get accepted; other times I cannot, not without potentially losing a job, or getting hurt, or getting killed even. It's maddening, not being able to hold a simple conversation without juggling the big secret, without needed to gauge if it's safe to bring a basic element of myself that others discuss so freely. So, even if they may not change much, I appreciate these young supporters (it is mostly school kids) reaching out to empathize and understand what that is like. Yes, it interferes with their daily life--as did tens of thousands of people going to the Capitol every weekend, and many week days, for two months.
It's understandable that it's not realistic for everyone, I hold no grudge for that (heck it wasn't realistic for me, and anyway I'm quiet enough because of it as it is). Mostly I take issue with the "That's stupid, I'm not doing it--never mind what I'll do instead" and the "That's not an important issue, I'm not expending any energy for it--never mind what I'll do instead" sentiments. It's lots of criticism without suggesting alternatives; it's not constructive.
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Corto
Member
My point is that Day of Silence is stupid.
Maybe you don't want to shut up for a whole day, that doesn't necessarily mean you think gay rights are not worth the effort, but rather that this is not the way to do it.
I must have missed the part where someone explained that wearing a badge was mandatory for Silence Day, because otherwise how do you plan to explain what it is you are defending? If I notice someone is not talking for a whole day "gay rights" is not the first thing that comes to my mind (hell, if I somehow made the connection to it being people showing respect for something, silence would make me think it is about people killed in a war or something like that). Ok, this may be because I live in buttfuck, Latin America, where we still publicly castrate gay people for fun (*), but several posters from the US mentioned how they had never heard of this. If you were unaware that playing mime for a whole day is supposed to show support for gay people, how the heck would it raise awareness to somehow notice some people not talking?
Other detail that bothers me is that those who would notice you aren't speaking on purpose will be those closer to you, friends, family, coworkers, etc, people with whom you interact every day. Most probably these people would either already know your stance on the subject or would find it dumb to be informed in this way (I know I would). Strangers unaware of the whole thing would simply assume you're either a mute, a retard or a douchebag.
There's so many better ways to raise awareness, not necessarily causing a ruckus with a big protest. I remember a piece of news I read years ago about a kid that wore a pink shirt to college (or was it school?) and was called a faggot by a bully. To show support, the next day most of the students decided to show up in pink shirts. It's easy, it's peaceful, it's original and it makes people think. You see a couple hundred guys in pink shirts, you ask someone what it is about and are informed. You "hear" a couple hundred people not talking, you don't even notice because most people don't strike conversations with random strangers.
(*) This is an exaggeration. We don't actually do this.
Maybe you don't want to shut up for a whole day, that doesn't necessarily mean you think gay rights are not worth the effort, but rather that this is not the way to do it.
I must have missed the part where someone explained that wearing a badge was mandatory for Silence Day, because otherwise how do you plan to explain what it is you are defending? If I notice someone is not talking for a whole day "gay rights" is not the first thing that comes to my mind (hell, if I somehow made the connection to it being people showing respect for something, silence would make me think it is about people killed in a war or something like that). Ok, this may be because I live in buttfuck, Latin America, where we still publicly castrate gay people for fun (*), but several posters from the US mentioned how they had never heard of this. If you were unaware that playing mime for a whole day is supposed to show support for gay people, how the heck would it raise awareness to somehow notice some people not talking?
Other detail that bothers me is that those who would notice you aren't speaking on purpose will be those closer to you, friends, family, coworkers, etc, people with whom you interact every day. Most probably these people would either already know your stance on the subject or would find it dumb to be informed in this way (I know I would). Strangers unaware of the whole thing would simply assume you're either a mute, a retard or a douchebag.
There's so many better ways to raise awareness, not necessarily causing a ruckus with a big protest. I remember a piece of news I read years ago about a kid that wore a pink shirt to college (or was it school?) and was called a faggot by a bully. To show support, the next day most of the students decided to show up in pink shirts. It's easy, it's peaceful, it's original and it makes people think. You see a couple hundred guys in pink shirts, you ask someone what it is about and are informed. You "hear" a couple hundred people not talking, you don't even notice because most people don't strike conversations with random strangers.
(*) This is an exaggeration. We don't actually do this.
what types of things deserve your spergin'
CrispSkittlez
Unprincipaly principled.
Was not aware of this at all and it's now too late. Even so, I probably would not have participated anyway. Not out of spite, but just because I'd like to be able to communicate with people during the day.
I can't wait for the Day of Constant Screaming.
Oh my gosh. Is that a word? I am so happy now.
Oh my gosh. Is that a word? I am so happy now.
T
Tewin Follow
Guest
I hope you burned down the school.
Thatch
Still not at 10k posts
We're burning everyone who's not gay, now? :V
Cain
Guess what mood I'm in today.
Hah, probably xD