National Unity Day was celebrated scholastically worldwide on Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2022, in order to raise awareness of the global phenomenon of bullying, a problem many students and adults are faced with every day.
According to the National Bullying Prevention Center- also known as PACER-, one in five school-aged children report being bullied at school. As a result, Unity Day was established as a day for individuals to wear orange in order to rally against the issue of bullying in schools. Whether it’s on the internet or in school, bullying happens everywhere every day; it’s a problem that takes effort from everybody to solve. The idea of Unity Day surrounds the idea that bullying can be prevented, and even though PV itself has little-to-no bullying, it is reassuring to know people will stand by those who are being ill-treated and will hopefully diminish it completely in the future through hard work and effort.
“I do see some people being bullied around PV, and it makes me really upset to see that,” tenth-grader Cameron Paisley said.
Students and staff were asked to wear orange, which represents people’s ability to show “kindness, acceptance, and inclusion,” according to the National Bullying Prevention Center. Some said there weren’t very many people wearing the selected color due to a lack of realization or because students had a half day on Wednesday.
“I didn’t really notice anyone else participating,” said eleventh-grader Novalee Mills. “It should also be noted that I would have participated had I got more notice and promotion of the event.”
Unity Day is about staying together, which requires much work and dedication.