25 Feb 2016

Pride Week brings love and understanding

Love and understanding are the key concepts of Island School’s inaugural Pride Week 22nd -26th Feb 2016.

The week kicked off with a visit from the Boys and Girls Club Association of Hong Kong who talked to Explorations students about the history of homosexuality, misconceptions and how the support of family and friends is critical.

On Tuesday the LGBT+ team Spectrum (part of the Island School Social Justice Group) ran lunchtime games on Block 5 playground challenging students to match the sexuality names with the meanings. Other students played question and answer Twister, and  Spectrum’s version of “Heads Up” a game in which the player asks their team for clues on a mystery meaning or identity.

In House teams students sketched chalk drawings that represented LGBT+ themes, on Wednesday, with Einstein and Rutherford being named winners! On Thursday the team sold cupcakes and other baked goods topped with LGBT+ facts. On Friday students dressed ‘rainbow’, got their faces painted, and performed at an open mic session.

You can show your pride #SHOWYOURPRIDE by taking a selfie at a Pride Week event and posting it on the Spectrum Facebook page or the ISSJ Instagram page. The best ones will win a free cupcake!

Arundhati Mukherjea, Project Leader for ISSJ Spectrum, said; “With the growing visibility of LGBT+ people around the world, it’s important for students to learn about the diverse range of genders and sexualities people identify themselves as. With greater understanding comes greater acceptance,  and I think lots of people from across the school have deepened their understanding this week. There has been a great atmosphere in the school and I look forward to what the rest of the week will bring.”