Yesterday I had the opportunity to stop by the Lifetime offices during Spirit Day and was overwhelmed by the support and dedication from the staff during the anti-bullying initiative. The whole staff was wearing purple!
While there we had a discussion about Spirit Day and the importance of visibility and storylines about bullying in entertainment media, which Drop Dead Diva tackled again in a recent episode.
Lifetime also went purple on social media yesterday and many of the network's stars took to Twitter to send a message of support to LGBT youth.
We love to see our friends sporting purple for #SpiritDay. Thanks @susan_lucci & @IsaacMizrahi! http://t.co/WYJM2aygzS
— Lifetime (@lifetimetv) October 17, 2013
Rachel Boston from Witches of East End told LGBT youth to embrace who they are.
#SpiritDay on the set of #WitchesOfEastEnd ! Be who you are and stand up to bullying. http://t.co/bbjMeiLh5Q pic.twitter.com/SFA1FxjryF
— Rachel Boston (@rachelboston) October 17, 2013
Star of Devious Maids, Susan Lucci, wore a purple dress for the occasion.
I'm going purple today for #SpiritDay to stand up against bullying and to support LGBT youth. http://t.co/1yl1RCaEYf pic.twitter.com/oekn2qwE0N
— Susan Lucci (@Susan_Lucci) October 17, 2013
Edy Ganem from Devious Maids also wore purple yesterday.
I'm going purple for #SpiritDay 10/17 to stand up against bullying and to support LGBT youth http://t.co/ZRAVFYBVdL pic.twitter.com/5EBkXwXRxC
— Edy Ganem (@EdyGanem) October 17, 2013
Isaac Mizrahi, who will be a judge on the new season of Project Runway All Stars which premieres next Thursday even recorded a video message.
On October 17, 2013, celebrities including Oprah Winfrey, Ashton Kutcher, Betty White, Demi Lovato, Jimmy Kimmel, Nick Cannon, Kristen Bell, Macklemore, Melissa Etheridge, WWE Superstar Darren Young and more went purple for the fourth annual Spirit Day. Eric McCormack & Debra Messing also wore purple ribbons during a Will & Grace reunion – as did TLC's Stacy London - on TODAY. Hosts of shows including Access Hollywood, Elvis Duran and the Morning Show, Extra, Good Morning America and the Wendy Williams Show also wore purple and spoke about Spirit Day on-air. The White House sent out messages of support on Twitter and tumblr. Sports leagues including Major League Baseball, Major League Soccer, the NBA, the NFL, the NHL and the WNBA participated on social media. And companies like American Eagle Outfitters, NBCUniversal, MTV, The Coca-Cola Company and Johnson & Johnson took a stand, along with hundreds of landmarks, schools, faith groups, media outlets, companies, and organizations. Facebook and Twitter users turned their profile photos purple and posted photos of classmates and coworkers wearing purple, and their messages of support for LGBT youth made #SpiritDay trend on Twitter.
Founded in 2010, Spirit Day is an international, united stand against bullying and show of support for LGBT teens and young adults everywhere. As we look back on Spirit Day 2013, please continue to spread the message and take action against bullying:
- Take a look at photos of who went purple to support LGBT youth
- Upload your own photos of you wearing purple to our website.
- Add your photos to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Tumblr using hashtag #SpiritDay
- Taking action to stand against bullying year round
Thanks for helping make Spirit Day 2013 a success!