With a sea of staffers dressed in purple on the steps of the Old Executive Office Building in Washington DC on Thursday, The White House voiced its strong support for LGBTQ youth and took a powerful stand against bullying. But the White House team was just one of many among elected and public officials speaking out. Take a look at these amazing activations by some of our nation's most respected leaders.
We are all more free when we are treated as equals. Today, White House staff stand against bullying and in support of LGBTQ youth #SpiritDay pic.twitter.com/kI4HcDlyDI
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) October 20, 2016
Proud to go purple on #SpiritDay to stand up against bullying and support #LGBTQ youth. pic.twitter.com/PTcKOEfPk5
— Eric Fanning (@SECARMY) October 20, 2016
Today and every day I stand against bullying and support #LGBT youth #SpiritDay
— Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (@SenatorShaheen) October 20, 2016
This #SpiritDay, I stand with #LGBTQ youth against school bullying. You are supported, and you are not alone.
— Rep. Mike Honda (@RepMikeHonda) October 19, 2016
On #spiritday + every day, we should strive 2 create a safe environment w tolerance + respect 4 all #WearPurple #LGBT @GLAAD pic.twitter.com/Y61GjlBUYE
— Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (@RosLehtinen) October 20, 2016
About Spirit Day
Each year, millions of people "go purple" for Spirit Day in a united stand against bullying and to show support for LGBTQ youth. According to a 2015 GLSEN survey, more than half of LGBTQ students report being victimized based on sexual orientation, with a further three quarters of students who report hearing anti-LGBTQ remarks in school. Started in 2010 by high school student Brittany McMillan, Spirit Day now draws the participation of celebrities, corporations, media outlets, sports leagues, schools, faith institutions, national landmarks, and individuals around the world, who join together in a united stand against bullying.
Check out glaad.org/spiritday for more about how to stand against bullying and show support for LGBTQ youth. Also follow @GLAAD on Twitter to keep up to date with #spiritday news.
Spirit Day is made possible by the generous support of its presenting partners Target and Wells Fargo, official partners, NBA and WNBA, NFL, Viacom, and WWE, and supporting partners, American Eagle Outfitters, Barilla, Comcast NBCUniversal, Kellogg’s, Kirkland & Ellis, Toyota Financial Services, and Zipcar. The translation of GLAAD’s Spirit Day Resource Kit into multiple languages is made possible by a generous grant from Google supporting GLAAD’s Global Voices Initiative. Global Spirit Day resource kits are presented by Logo’s Global Ally campaign. Past participants in Spirit Day include the White House, the Empire State Building, Oprah Winfrey, Ellen DeGeneres, Cher, Laverne Cox, Kim Kardashian, Demi Lovato, Ariana Grande, Shaquille O'Neal, Good Morning America, The Today Show, The View, The Talk, The Tonight Show, MTV, the NBA, the NFL, Major League Baseball, NASCAR, WWE, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, the Las Vegas Strip, and more.
