Spirit Day

[1] Started in 2010 by Canadian teenager Brittany McMillan, it was initially created in response to a rash of widely publicized bullying-related suicides of gay school students in 2010, including that of Tyler Clementi.

[11][12][13] Further national and international attention was drawn to Spirit Day when Clint McCance, the vice-president of an Arkansas school board,[14] posted incendiary anti-homosexual remarks on Facebook.

[22] In 2013, support grew to involve the White House, Oprah Winfrey, Ashton Kutcher, MTV, OWN, Logo, Sundance, Facebook, and others.

American Apparel posted a separate store for Spirit Day where shoppers would receive 10% select purple items and the company would donate 10% to benefit GLAAD's work towards equality.

[23] In 2014, Laverne Cox, a transgender actress and activist, went to New York City and hosted an event in which she helped turn the lights on that were strung on the Empire State Building.