Spirit Day -- An Open Letter to Whiners

Today was Spirit Day, a day to wear purple in support of LGBTQ youth, in condemnation of bullying, and in remembrance of recent suicides. Some people weren’t content to let that be.

This event was created out of the deaths of a group of children who were gay or believed to be gay. If someone holds a candlelit memorial for a dead son, do we say “What of the millions of children who die each year? Why do we hold a memorial for this one? He should get no special treatment!” and make a mess of it? If people protest together and bring awareness for violence against women, should the men of the world stand up and say, “What about violence against us?” Or when people hold a fund-raiser for breast cancer, are we to refuse to give them a cent unless they are raising money for all forms of cancer?

The attitudes of many people I saw and read today are nothing short of rude, selfish, and insensitive. They seemed to be incapable of looking past an event that was meant to bring awareness to a specific issue, and instead thought only of themselves. I suppose it’s because bullying is a subject that can be close to the heart of anyone. I can understand the impulse to say, “What about me?” when one watches a sudden outpouring of support and attention for someone’s plight, and know that the same thing happened not long ago to the one.

But I say this: if you truly feel so strongly about bullying, then seek out the organizations and groups that fight it. Volunteer, donate, and find out what events they are hosting to bring awareness to the problems of so many youth. Don’t spend your time flailing about on Facebook, scoffing at the people who wear purple, and decrying those who ignore the plights of all youth to focus on a small group. Put your money where your mouth is, literally.

For many kids out there, who saw their classmates and their teachers dressed in purple, they saw, perhaps for the first time, that they weren’t alone. How many LGBTQ kids are out there, afraid to come out and tell people what they are, for fear of hatred and intolerance? How many of them received just a glimmer of hope at seeing that not everyone hates them for how they feel? Doesn’t that mean something? Isn’t that something good?

But the whiners will say that wearing purple does nothing. They’ll ask, “What about the straight kids?” Well, if even one youth, who was thinking of ending it all, saw that there are people out there who care, and goes on living, then I’d say wearing purple did something. And perhaps this day may have meant a little less for the gay and lesbian youth if it were a general day for anti-bullying. The message we’d send is, “Yeah, you got it tough, fag, but so do we.”

Nine out of ten LGBTQ youth are victims of bullying. Think about that. Nine out of ten. What do you think the percentage is for straight kids? And those same youth are four times as likely to take their own lives as straight youth. Those are some scary numbers. I’ve experienced bullying, too. I was pinned up against the wall and threatened. I was crank called and mocked. But, y’know, I think that I can set my own interests aside for the kids in the LGBTQ community. And hey, let me know when you plan to stop whining and hold an event for all the victims of bullying. I’ll wear my colours, fly the banner, and encourage donations to the right sources; or if I choose not to, I’ll be sure to keep from whining about it over Facebook.

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