The Signal
April 10, 2001

Alix Olson breaks the silence for those quieted

By Lauren Gallagher and Dan Brady

You could hear it, not only from the steps of Green Hall, but also at a distance.

You could hear it, not only at 8 p.m. last Wednesday, but also throughout the day.

You could see it, not only on people’s faces, but also through the color of their clothes and in their hearts.

Silence.

The Gay Union of Trenton State at TCNJ (GUTS) held its annual celebration, a Day of Silence aimed at remembering those who are silenced every day due to hatred, oppression and prejudice.

According to Betsy Housten, co-pres8dent of GUTS, participants of the celebration wore black and were silent all day.

The silence broke when Alix Olson took the steps of Green Hall to perform a selection of her slam poetry.

The crowd was left shocked and empowered by the time she was done and the Day of Silence came to a close.

Olson’s performance was to end the Day of Silence in which those who support the rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered individuals do not speak all day in an effort to draw attention to those who are kept quiet by fear and hatred.

Olson said, "You seem like a breaking it crowd," and with that, the silence broke.

Olson’s energy-filled, sexually charged, politically conscious poetry was well received by the crowd.

Audience members cheered and laughed throughout the performance.

"At first I was shocked because you don’t normally hear what she is saying," said Kristen Denoii, freshman biology major, referring to Olson’s blatant honesty regarding such topics as sex, poverty, commercialism and society.

"In terms of performance, I think it went astoundingly well," said Betsy Housten, co-president of GUTS "(Olson) put on such an engaging dynamic performance that no one could have left unaffected by, but I had higher hopes for the attendance I think there could have been more people that showed up to hear her powerful messages."

Karim Beldijilali, co-president of GUTS, felt that in spite of its competition with other activities and events last Wednesday night the program was a great success.

"A turnout of over 100 faculty and students was impressive- the response has been very positive and I personally had a great time" Beldijilali said.

Jesse Rosenblum, associate vices president of college relations, believed the Day of Silence was a effective action taken by GUTS in order to enhance the learning process.

"As a theme and symbol, I believe the Day of Silence was a wonderful success," Rosenblum said. "It caught the attention of the campus community, and I noted that many faculty, staff and students wore black including myself. I am gratified that much of the analysis and discussion on that day centered on the danger of silence in the face of intolerance and adversity."

Through the art of spoken work, Olson addressed various issues concerning those who have been silence in their lives.

Housten’s favorite was Olson’s first poem, " I Believe," with its "here I am , this is what I stand for" attitude.

Juda Bennett, English professor said, "It’s so needed on this conservative campus to have a voice like that."

He endorsed having Olson back on many occasions and said he’d like to have her bring her" guerilla poetry tactics" to campus.

"I’d like to have her parade up and down towers doing her performance," Bennett said.

Part of her piece "Warrior" read, "I feel like a warrior just for making it through a day. Ya know, sometimes you feel like a fighter ‘cause you fight to keep fighting away. We gotta get up when we’re pushed to the ground. They ain’t gonna hear us if we’re screaming face down."

Olson dedicated "Warrior" to all those who attended the performance " for withstanding the silence I have in life and especially for breaking it."

"I hope she brought a new perspective to the audience regarding gay rights." Beldjilai said. " Her means of doing so throughout her poetry are quite unique and inventive, but her message is a universal one of acceptance."

"I thought it was edgy," said Ann Marie Nicolosi, women and gender studies professor." She had a great understanding of radical feminist history and tremendous ability to pt her finger on issues, cut to the core, so right to the heart."

Although they realized the Day of Silence was only a small step closer to breaking the silence every day, GUTS members remain optimistic about its impact.

"I don’t have a perfect solution," Housten said. "I can’t make all the hate go away. But we can do out best to create support and awareness and show that we won’t be silenced no matter what happens. There are plenty more people like us who refuse to be silenced too."

Olson’s presentation highlighted her expertise as a spoken word poet.

Her poem "America’s on Sale" featured voice changes to mimic a public announcement system and an annoying sales women.

Her "Criminal" was a bluesy piece with Olson actually sang. Her set went as follows: "I Believe," " Daughter," " Cute for a girl," " Criminals," " America’s on Sale," " Daddy," "Dear Mr. President," " Poetry Too," " Popcorn and Laughter," " Gender Game," and " Cunt Country."

Olson applauded GUTS members for using negativity of recent hate crimes as ammunition and for putting them into a positive account.

"My hope is that people will feel connected to some aspect of my work," she said. "I hope people will think and feel what comes to them and embrace it. I think hopefully I am putting enough out there so that people can grasp something."

Although most of the crowd was not familiar with Olson’s works, the reactions to the presentation were overwhelmingly favorable.

In reaction to the recent hate crimes on campus, Olson said, " hopefully people will see that lots of people are metaphorically slipped notes under their doors."

GUTS members hope their actions will aid those who are afraid to come out.

"To those in the closet, I know incidents like this make them so much more reluctant to come out, but this is not an issue of being out tot he world and obvious to everyone, but tan idea of being honest to oneself," Beldjilai said. " In the end, that is the only person for whom you are truly accountable."

"You’re talking about the human race club, Olson said. "You’ve gotta let everybody in."