The week of Oct. 7 was National Respect Week! On Thursday, Oct. 10, Lodi High School presented it’s second annual Pride Day. Students were encouraged to wear pride or the GSA tie dye shirts in support of the LGBTQ+ community. Then, on Friday, Oct. 11, students wore their favorite sports team jerseys as a way to “Team Up Against Bullying.” To the students of LHS, respect means being kind and considerate to others, treating everyone equally, and taking others feelings into consideration. According to the Human Rights Campaign, 26% of LGBTQ+ youth say their biggest problems are feeling accepted by their family, having trouble at school/bullying, and living with the fear to be open/out. The American Society for the Positive Care of Children reports that 160,000 kids skip school each day because they fear being bullied. It is important that we make our peers feel comfortable with who they are and encourage them to, proudly, be themselves. How can you stand up against bullying/show pride?

The Trevor Hotline (save and protect young LGBTQ lives): 1-866-488-7386

National Suicide Prevention Hotline(USA): 1-800-273-8255