White House press secretary Jay Carney showed up for a press conference on Thursday wearing a purple tie, a public show of support for an anti-bully campaign kicked off by the lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgender activist community.
Tradition holds that those who support the LGBT push-back against bullying — especially toward youth — don purple in honor of Spirit Day. LGBT activist Gilbert Baker said the purple on the LBGT flag represents spirit, The Hill reported.
Oct. 17 has been dubbed LGBT Spirit Day since 2010, when a Canadian teenager noted a trend of suicides by gay youth and wanted to draw attention to the plight of the bullied. GLAAD seized on the campaign idea, and voila — Spirit Day was born.
Mr. Carney sent out a tweet about the anti-bully campaign: “Celebrate #SpiritDay by joining Americans across the country to prevent and address bullying of LBGT kids.”
And he was joined by several others of celebrity status. Among them: “Jersey Shore” reality show stars Jenni “J-Woww” Farley and Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi and WNBA player Brittney Griner, The Hill reported.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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