Being Kind to One Another - And To Ourselves

Canadian actress Ellen Page recently demonstrated a great deal of this courage when she came out publicly at the Human Rights Campaign’s Time to Thrive conference. During her speech, Ellen pointed out that “this world would be a whole lot better if we just made an effort to be less horrible to one another. If we took just 5 minutes to recognize each other's beauty, instead of attacking each other for our differences.”

 

For University of Missouri football player Michael Sam, the prospect of coming out was made especially daunting by the homophobia associated with his sport. Michael came out to his teammates at the beginning of the football season, and recently revealed that he is gay to ESPN. The Missouri team rallied around Michael from the beginning, and he has found a great deal of support since coming out in the media.

 

Next week is Pride Week at Greenwood. It also the week that this year’s Senior Play, The Laramie Project, takes the stage.  “Ellen and Michael both reinforce an important message: we need to be kind to one another, and to ourselves,” Principal Hardy said. “These messages go beyond Pride Week – they’re a big part of our school culture, and we need to keep the conversation going. I encourage you all to get involved in next week’s activities, which focus on what we as individuals can do to make our world a safer, more accepting place.”

 

The Laramie Project tells the story of the murder of gay college student Matthew Shepard. While the play reminds us that there can be tragic consequences to embracing who you are, it reinforces the importance of acceptance and kindness.

 

“The Laramie Project is a challenging play – it will challenge you to think critically about the world around you. And ultimately, it will help you to become the kind of people Ellen is talking about.”