By Alexandra Bolles, Associate Director, Campaigns & External Engagement
The amazing @Lavernecox at the @EmpireStateBldg for #spiritday pic.twitter.com/uegQJmEuQd
— GLAAD (@glaad) October 16, 2014
This morning, Emmy-nominated actress Laverne Cox and the cast of Logo TV’s “Laverne Cox Presents: The T Word” joined GLAAD to light the Empire State Building in purple for Spirit Day in a united stand against bullying and to show support for LGBT youth. Check out photos and GLAAD’s video below.
The documentary, which premieres on MTV and Logo TV tomorrow at 7pm ET/PT, takes an intersectional look at the lives of seven transgender youth across America. “The T Word” is part of MTV’s “Look Different” campaign, which aims to fight race, gender and LGBT bias by providing information, education and avenues to action. GLAAD has worked closely with the cast and networks leading up to the premiere.
GLAAD has pictures of Laverne and “The T Word” cast members at the Empire State Building (Photo credit – Brad Barkett / Getty Images for MTV):
This morning’s event was groundbreaking for the NYC landmark, and is just one example of the many ways Laverne, MTV (which recently received an “Excellent” grade in GLAAD’s Network Responsibility Index), Logo TV, and additional Viacom networks and stars are taking a stand against bullying for Spirit Day 2014. On top of going purple online, Logo has been airing messages encouraging viewers to participate in Spirit Day and is airing documentaries about coming out, marriage equality, and more throughout the day. Tons of MTV networks have all gone purple, as has #LookDifferent and the cast of Faking It.
Laverne isn’t the only member of the Orange is the New Black family to support LGBT youth this week:
The Empire State Building is in good purple company as a landmark, too. The NASDAQ, MTV in Times Square, the New York Stock Exchange, the Thompson Reuters Building, and American Eagle Outfitters in Times Square are also raising awareness and support for LGBT youth today.
Spirit Day, which takes place today, October 16, inspires millions to wear purple or “go purple” online in a united stand against bullying and to show their support for LGBT youth. Each year, Spirit Day draws the participation of celebrities, corporations, media outlets, sports leagues, schools, faith institutions, national landmarks, and individuals. Spirit Day is made possible by the generous support of its national partners PepsiCo and Wells Fargo, as well as official partners Comcast-NBCUniversal and Google, and supporting partner American Eagle Outfitters.
You can go purple now by putting on purple, posting about #spiritday, and sharing your favorite #spiritday posts on social media.
Check out glaad.org/spiritday for more about how to stand against anti-LGBT bullying and follow @GLAAD on Twitter to keep up to date with #spiritday news!