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    Spirit Day

    Black Voices Lead the Charge to Celebrate #SpiritDay 2023, Are Loud & Proud in Their Support For LGBTQ Youth

    Kayla Thompson, Communities of Color AssociateBy 9 Mins Read

    DaShawn Usher (Director, Communities of Color and Media), Kayla Thompson (Associate, Communities of Color and Media), and Julian J. Walker (Associate Director, Communities of Color and Media) donning their purple for LGBTQ youth at the #SpiritDay Concert. 

    Each year, LGBTQ people, organizations, and our allies take the Spirit Day pledge, flooding social media timelines with a sea of purple in a show of solidarity and support for LGBTQ youth. This year is no different, and Black voices have shown up unwavering in their support for LGBTQ youth across the globe. 

    Black LGBTQ people are at the helm of GLAAD’s 2023 Spirit Day events. Icon Laverne Cox, accompanied by performer and GLAAD Board Member Peppermint, kickstarted this year’s festivities at the top of the Empire State Building, bathing the city in purple in support of LGBTQ youth. 

     

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    A post shared by Laverne Cox (@lavernecox)

    The annual Spirit Day concert, held last night in Downtown LA at The Belasco, featured Black queer performers Wayne Brady and Vincint, both of whom are also 2023 Out100 honorees. Both Brady and Vincint gave stellar performances and shared moving messages of support. 

    Wayne Brady performing at GLAAD’s Spirit Day Concert at The Belasco.

    Addressing the room in the midst of an energetic set radiating pure queer joy, Vincint said to the audience “I hope you love yourselves as much as I love you.”

    Vincint performing at GLAAD’s Spirit Day Concert at The Belasco.

    As messages of solidarity and love continue to pour in, LGBTQ youth and adults alike see that they are visible, valued, and accepted. This year’s Spirit Day celebrations and anti-bullying campaign are particularly significant, as many of the more than 500 anti-LGBTQ bills proposed throughout the United States in 2023 have targeted LGBTQ youth, who already report experiencing higher levels of bullying and harassment regarding their identities.

    For Black LGBTQ+ youth the situation can be even more dire, as they occupy a precarious position with identities that lie at the intersection of multiple systems of oppression. While representation, visibility, and the amplification of Black queer voices is on the rise, there are still so few avenues for Black queer youth to see themselves and their experiences reflected in their everyday lives, and it can be even harder for them to find acceptance. 

    Human Rights Campaign’s 2019 “Black and African American LGBTQ Youth Report” detailed that “77% of Black and African American LGBTQ youth have heard family members say negative things about LGBTQ people,” and “only 19% say they can ‘definitely’ be themselves at home.” This is indicative of the homophobia, transphobia, and misinformation surrounding the community that can still proliferate in some Black families, communities, and circles. 

    Campaigns like Spirit Day provide Black LGBTQ youth with the much needed possibility models, representation, and acceptance they may not have access to in their everyday lives. Black LGBTQ people and Black allies who have voiced their support for LGBTQ youth today have shown Black queer youth the possibility for a brighter, more visible future filled with love.  

    Ty Ballard (Junior Associate, Communities of Color and Media) and Marie Tagbo (Intern, Communities of Color and Media) wearing purple to show their support for LGBTQ youth.

    As we continue to navigate pulses of proposed anti-LGBTQ legislation and a cultural landscape that is rife with anti-LGBTQ sentiment and discrimination, being emphatic and unabashed in our activism is more important than ever to reach the most marginalized and vulnerable in our community.

    See below for more of the powerful and moving Black voices who have joined in the Spirit Day call to action, showing up loud, proud, and in purple for the community’s youth:

     

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    A post shared by Wayne Brady (@mrbradybaby)

     

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    A post shared by Laverne Cox (@lavernecox)

     

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    A post shared by M.Diggs (@iam_mdiggs)

     

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    A post shared by PBS Digital Studios (@pbsds)

     

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    A post shared by Baby Tate (@imbabytate)

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