Mixing Mediums for Respect: Students use Art to Advocate for Change
For students at Trevor Browne High School in Phoenix, AZ, respect is molded into the campus culture and celebrated each year through the R-word campaign.
During the month of March, students host a Spread the Word to End the Word week of events. Activities are available for students to participate in during lunch and the school’s advisory period. One event the school hosted this year was a Respect Rally. Members of the Unified organization wore tie-dye t-shirts and shared their experience with the R-word. Lauren Potter, star of Glee, stopped by and spoke about the impacts the R-word had on her life as well.
Events vary from year to year, but provide interaction with students in the Unified organization and offer the opportunity to learn more about the R-word campaign. A banner is always available for students to take the pledge for respect.
“ Thankfully the campaign has made a big difference because now most individuals are involved with kids that have intellectual disabilities. They’re not excluded from activities anymore,” Cassandra Quintero, a senior at Trevor Browne, said.
Advocates for the R-word campaign at Trevor Browne turned their pledge into a tangible reminder for the community this year. Special Olympics Arizona started a Unified Arts program, a medium that encourages artistic expression through use of campus resources. With this program, students were able to create a message to inspire others to eliminate the use of this word from their vocabulary.
“I looked at this wall across from our school and thought it would be such a cool way to raise awareness for inclusion and ridding the R-Word not only for our campus, but for all of those who drive by every single day,” Stephanie Nelson, a teacher at Trevor Browne, said.
The artwork was selected as the Unified Art program winner for the month of February in Special Olympics Arizona. Unified collaboration helped to complete the mural which will serve as a reminder for respect on campus for years to come.
Outside of the Spread the Word to End the Word week and the Unified Arts program, Trevor Browne also hosts Unified Basketball and a Super Special event on campus. These are other events students can engage in to create a more unified school environment.
Diego Quezada is a senior at Trevor Browne and has noticed the impact Special Olympics and the R-word campaign have made on campus. “ It has given people more insight to the events [on campus] and how changing one word in their vocabulary could change how others feel,” he said. “ Being unified means to be together as one, that we don’t see the differences between each other.”
Students at Trevor Browne will continue to advocate for respect throughout the year and hope students on their campus and beyond recognize the importance of spreading the word to end the word.
If you have a story, video, photo, poem, essay, guide, dance, (or anything else) to share with the world, follow the three easy steps in this link or publish your story on Medium and email it to spalumbo@specialolympics.org. If you prefer, you could also put your story into a word document, let us know whether you would like it published under your name or anonymously, and email it to spalumbo@specialolympics.org.
Pledge your support to end the R-Word here.
