It’s early afternoon and the hallways of Garfield wait in silence for the approaching lunch break. Like a dam released, students flood out at the bell, pushing and jostling with their friends, settling into various formations. To some, the circles their fellow students encompass seem as closed as their minds. Hanna King skips the circles; she knows what it’s like to face intolerance and discrimination. She’s headed to the most accepting of places. Enter GSA.

“When I was younger, things were a lot different for me. I couldn’t get any support for being gay. People would send me nasty texts and make insensitive comments. Even teachers didn’t know how to deal with me,“ says King, a senior at Garfield.

“I don’t want other kids to have the same problems finding resources as I had. GSA makes Garfield more open about talking, and overall more accepting.“

GSAs, or Gay-Straight Alliances, are a network of nationwide organizations based on the promotion of safety, tolerance and understanding among members of the community of all sexual orientations and gender identities. It offers a safe environment — members have no qualms about attending and offering their ideas.

“It’s really accepting and everyone is friendly,” says freshman Amanda Macfadden. “There is a lot of support; the majority of straight members means there are many allies.”

GSA has many chapters in high schools across the nation; these groups work collectively as a whole and also individually at each school. The club is welcome to all, both straight and LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning) youth.

Some students hold the opinion that, while it’s open to everybody, the club specifically targets gay people for its demographic. This opinion tends to hold no weight with members of GSA. On the contrary, many members are heterosexual and yet still open in meetings. Junior Audrey Spaeth’s reasons for attending are clear.

“I’m straight, but I have a lot of friends and family members who are gay. I want to support them; I want to know how to support them,“ Spaeth says. She finds GSA to be a great proponent of a human rights issue that normally doesn’t get enough advocation.

GSA seems to have a found a leader in Hanna King, who plays a large role in the operations of it and other groups. She is a facilitator during meetings, and leads multiple groups in their attempts to promote awareness and offer help. During the ’08/’09 school year, she represented Garfield GSA in Washington D.C., as she lobbied Senators Maria Cantwell and Patti Murray and Representative Jim McDermott in support of anti-bullying legislation. This legislation would help in many ways to decrease spiteful attacks and exclusion.

What King and other members have in common is the resignation they hold in their purpose. Nothing gets accomplished by sitting around. The ability to speak out gives them an opportunity to create change.

Legislators cannot ignore such passion from a young group of people with belief in their cause. GSA began as a club, hosting a body of ideas and open minds, but became a perceivable message. The meetings begin as voices and ideas, but develop into real application.

“I like GSA…because I’m proud of the different functions we serve, the programming we’ve accomplished, and the improvements of Garfield’s school climate and rhetoric,“ says King.

The club itself, advised by staff member Rosie Moore and district-appointed Ebon Craig Williams, has many functions throughout the year.

At the beginning of the year the group compiles the Safe Staff List, which allows students to speak more openly. It is a list of any and all teachers willing to openly welcome students to talk to them about issues concerning sexuality and identity. The list is a written guarantee that the staff member will be tolerant and accepting and keep conversations confidential.

“It’s not necessarily that the students look up specific names,“ says Moore. “It’s more that the Safe Staff List makes the whole room feel safer for students to be open. The teachers are very supportive.”

Many Garfield students participate in the Day of Silence. A national event with hundreds of thousands of participants, the Day of Silence sets a goal for those willing to maintain a daylong vow of silence. This represents the silencing of LGBTQ youth about their identities because of marginalization or harassment. Garfield GSA plays a role encouraging people to participate, passing out rainbow ribbons, and handing out speaking cards for those participating to give to their teachers.

“I think it’s a great event because not only is it challenging but anyone in the school can easily participate,” says Spaeth. “It seems that a lot of people in our school support our cause, even if they don’t have the time or the motivation to come to our meetings.”

GSA also puts on District-Wide Staff Training. Each May, they plan and facilitate a district-wide training around dealing with LGBTQ students and harassment in the classroom, for teachers. This event, a three-hour workshop with a youth panel and a dinner, reaches a full capacity of people every year. Students do all of the teaching, which allows youth to be fully involved, and give input as to what they want.

For support in classrooms, GSA holds a Freshman Forum every year. Members appear in all biology and physical science classrooms for a two-hour of discussion with freshman. The discussion is peer-facilitated, and students are encouraged to talk about their experiences and share their opinions about gender, sexuality, and harassment at Garfield. This year’s forum was revamped; the classes were presented with a brand new movie called “Straightlaced: How Gender’s Got Us All Tied Up,“ featuring high school students of all genders and orientations talking about their experiences.

Perhaps it’s the variety of events that allows Garfield’s GSA to boast such a large attendance. The Garfield chapter of the club holds the highest amount of members in a five-state region, with about 100 people on the mailing list for info and announcements, and an impressive estimated forty members at each meeting. Most other high schools in Seattle contain GSAs, with the exception of Cleveland, however many of them do not top ten members.

“It’s tougher for people in other states; some can’t even join or start a GSA club at their schools,” says Macfadden.

Meetings for GSA occur weekly (Wednesday’s at lunch in Ms. Manuel’s room) and topics differ. They plan events, practice facilitation, and sometimes host guest speakers. Many groups in the community, such as Seattle Public Libraries, look to GSA for queer youth input about programming. They also discuss national issues and local functions.

Practical applications of GSA’s work occur often. Last year, the Westboro Baptist Church made a visit to Garfield, arousing discontent and prompting a counter-demonstration. The church’s extreme goal was apparent: to dissuade students and community members from any homosexual behavior or acceptance. Their demonstrations of hate, however, did more to underscore the unity of Garfield than to promote their cause. As soon as King found out the church was coming, she and others organized a large group of students to peacefully counter-protest. Newspapers took notice, and on the day of the event hundreds of Garfield students and community members poured out onto the streets to protest. The church’s message fell short amongst the purple, as Garfield and GSA stood up together.

Like members of GSA, Constance McMillen knows the value of standing up for something. A high-school senior in Mississippi, McMillen recently made a simple request to attend her high school’s prom, wearing a tux, with her girlfriend. Instead of allowing it, the school decided to cancel the prom for everybody. The aftershock of the schools response was huge. Voices across the nation spoke up.

“I’m really proud of her,“ says Jenny*, an anonymous student. “All she did was ask for her rights as a normal person, and people picked up her fight. It stands for something stronger; the fight for simple civil rights.“

If McMillen had a GSA at her school, maybe things would have been different. The Gay-Straight Alliance provides an output for many who feel trapped. It is a safe community and somewhere for people to always feel welcome.

If for no other reason, stop by for the free bagels. Noah’s Bagels, in coalition with the school board, provides them every week.. “It’s totally the best part,” King says.