When walking through the rotunda during lunch last week, there was an extra table set up alongside the college representatives and mud volleyball sign-ups. Handmade buttons were lain across the table for purchase, with slogans such as “Gender is for French nouns.” On Monday, a true-false game including statements like “Sexuality is a Lifestyle” could be played by passing students.

The table was organized by the Total Equality Alliance, or TEA, club for the school’s Pride Week. Each day had a different theme, as follows:

Monday: Manners and Etiquette

Manners and etiquette consisted of educating cisgender and straight people on how to ask someone if they were trans or queer. People learned what questions were appropriate to ask and what was the politest way to ask.

Tuesday: The Myth of Binary

The Tuesday discussion focused on how gender is a social construct and that being non-binary is valid, no matter what anyone tells you.

Wednesday: LGBTQ+ People In the Media

The primary focus was the progress—or lack of—representation of people of the LGBTQ+ community in TV shows, movies, and books.

Thursday: Attraction and Expression

The TEA talked about how a person’s sexual or romantic orientation does not equal how they present themselves. For example, you can be gay, identify as a boy, but still present yourself in a feminine way.

Friday: The Day of Silence

The Day of Silence was not only an event at Lawrence High, but all across the country. Participants spoke as little as possible to honor the LGBTQ+ people whose voices have been silenced.

In preparation for the club-sponsored week, each meeting the week before had a large turnout. According to junior Kendall Brown, anyone who was able to make it was there to help. Some participants even designed their own buttons to sell at the table.

“We had a really big group on Friday then we had some students come in on Sunday and work for almost two and a half hours,” club sponsor Lindsay Buck said.

Last year, each day of Pride Week was dedicated to a specific sexuality or gender. However, current president of the TEA, junior Tatyana Younger, explained the reason behind changing the daily topics.

“It was a big focus in the group that we wanted to talk about identities that weren’t as mentioned,” Younger said. “You hear about people being bisexual a lot, and you hear about trans people a lot, so this year we were like ‘Hey, let’s talk about other things so each year people can still grow and learn and get educated.’”