Can you hear the silence?

The Day of Silence’s campaigns main objective is to eliminate and prevent the degrading manifestations of bullying and humiliating in educational institutions to become more secure for all pupils and students, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, ethnicity, religion, appearance, and other social and personal features.

Bullying presents one of the greatest health risks to children, youth, and young adults in every society. It is pernicious in its impact even if often less visible and less readily identifiable than other public health concerns. The epicenter for bullying are schools, colleges, and universities, where vast numbers of children, youth, and young adults spend much of their time. Bullying—a form of harassment and violence—needs to be understood from a developmental, social, and educational perspective.

There is no addressing legal framework, strategy and accurate picture of bullying in educational institutions of Armenia. Furthermore, intolerance toward what is set out in “traditional” mentality and nationalist myths, the low level of awareness and consciousness, absence of respect to each others culture is exacerbated the situation.

In Armenia Day of Silence is commemorated since 2010. Every year PINK Armenia is organizing events on Day of Silence.

In year 2011 organization has launched its e-magazine, called “As you”!

In 2012 the organization held a press conference during which speakers presented about the effective mechanisms of prevention and the need of elaborating measures, in particular about the necessity of having competent professionals in educational institutions as well as about the education and protection of human rights. The organization’s staff prepared posters with titles ”I’m erasing my mask of silence”.

In 2013, organization carried out a press conference-discussion on bullying, degrading treatment and violence in Armenian educational institutions. Speakers presented cases, personal stories, which were collected during daily work time by the organization’s staff. Also were presented videos produced by organization, which called on young people to break the silence and speak out about the humiliation and discrimination that happens in educational institutions.

This year likewise a few dozen youth people join to the Day of Silence online campaign calling the public their messages to break the silence. They made selfies and shared pictures with the messages on how they are breaking the silence. According to the ideology of the day, on April 18 the organization will be not available to the world, we’ll not answer to e-mails, phone calls or provide any direct services, we’ll keep silence this day.

You can follow to the Day of Silence online campaign facebook.com/dosarmenia on this page.