Here's the history of the largest annual anti-bullying camapaign in the world: Spirit Day.
2010
Brittany McMillan, then a 15-year-old teen in high school, launched the idea to wear purple in honor of the rash of young people who were dying by suicide after anti-LGBTQ bullying. A Facebook event page for Spirit Day went viral and GLAAD began working on the day to involve celebrities, athletes, businesses, elected officials, organizations, and landmarks. The cast of Glee and Ricky Martin, plus hosts of The View, CNBC, and TODAY participated in year one.
2011
The Obama White House went purple for Spirit Day on Facebook and posted about the day on WhiteHouse.gov.
The American Federation of Teachers and GLAAD partnered on Spirit Day classroom kits for teachers and a PSA series featuring LGBTQ youth with Amy Poehler, Shaquille O'Neal, Chaz Bono, Naya Rivera and more. Comcast donated $3M in airtime to push the PSAs to 20 million homes.
