Tomorrow, people across the globe will be wearing purple in memory of gay youths who recently committed suicide after experiencing homophobia. We encourage students to don their violet attire to show solidarity with the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.
However, simply wearing purple is not enough. While Penn has been recognized as an LGBT-friendly school, students still need to maintain a culture in which people feel comfortable being who they are — even when there’s no Facebook event telling them to do so.
The Lambda Alliance and Penn Athletes and Allies Tackling Homophobia are working with Penn Athletics to develop a diversity training program. Initiatives like this are a strong step toward combating discrimination.
But individual students also need to be cognizant of their actions and words on a day-to-day basis. Students need to think twice before even casually making homophobic remarks — and should never bully or tolerate bullying of their peers.
No one should be discriminated against or feel a need to take their own lives because of their sexual orientation. We hope today’s students can create a more inclusive and tolerant society so these types of tragedies stop occurring.
