GLAAD Leads Spirit Day, Supporting Gay Youth Against Bullying

On Thursday, October 20, 2016, millions of Americans and citizens throughout the world will wear purple on Spirit Day in a stand against bullying and in support of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) youth. In an effort to cultivate allies and close the gap between growing legal protections and lived LGBTQ acceptance, GLAAD is once again leading outreach to engage the participation of individuals, celebrities, corporations, small businesses, media outlets, schools, local communities and even national landmarks.

In President Obama's 2015 Pride Month proclamation, he declared, "for countless young people, it is not enough to simply say it gets better; we must take action too." On Spirit Day, participants can easily demonstrate their support for LGBTQ kids, teens, and young adults simply by going purple: wearing it, talking about bullying, and taking action in local communities.

Student Brittany McMillan founded Spirit Day in 2010 in response to the alarming number of young LGBTQ lives lost to suicide -- notably, the loss of Tyler Clementi. She wanted to create a day of awareness, acceptance, and love
to prevent such tragedies. With GLAAD's help, millions of teachers, workplaces, media personalities, and students wore purple, which symbolizes spirit on the rainbow flag, to stand in solidarity with LGBTQ youth.

Today, Spirit Day is an international movement of solidarity. Every year since 2010, on the third Thursday of October, millions go purple to stand up against bullying and to accelerate acceptance for LGBTQ kids, teens, and young adults.

When Laverne Cox lit the Empire State Building purple during 2014's Spirit Day, she got to the heart of the vision: "I want LGBTQ youth all over this country to know that they are beautiful, to know that they are divinely made, and that their lives matter."

Observed annually since 2010, individuals, schools, organizations and corporations wear purple, which symbolizes 'spirit' on the rainbow flag, to raise awareness about the need to protect our LGBTQ youth. You can be a part by wearing purple, posting on your mobile app under #spiritday, or taking the Spirit Day Challenge, to help raise funds to fight bullying. They have already raised $54,337 of their $100,000 goal.

Help engage the participation of your friends, colleagues, local media and public officials. By spreading the word about Spirit Day, you can help turn your local community purple in a stand against bullying and in a show of support for LGBTQ youth. Pledge to go purple, and encourage members of your community to do the same.

Go purple online by using GLAAD's app at glaad.org/spiritday to turn your Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pictures purple. Share your support via Tweets, Snapchat, Vine, and selfies in your Spirit Day purple using #SpiritDay.

And donate to the Spirit Day fund by chipping in just $5 or whatever amount is right for you. You'll be helping to support GLAAD's year-round efforts to combat bullying, protect LGBTQ youth, and bring Spirit Day to more people than ever.

Tell people why you are wearing purple, share the history and message of Spirit Day, and ask those around you to participate by wearing purple in a stand against bullying. Contact local businesses and organizations, and ask them to support Spirit Day and LGBTQ youth by going purple at their place of operation and on social media. Encourage local media outlets to cover an event for Spirit Day or pitch a story to them that raises awareness of bullying and issues faced by LGBTQ youth.

Or, hold an event for Spirit Day at your local community center, your college campus, or another public area. Encourage attendees to wear purple and center the event on raising awareness about a local issue pertaining to LGBTQ youth or bullying.

For information and resources, visit http://spiritday.glaad.org/