Spirit Day, which is celebrated in honor of LGBTQ+ youth. Nearly every MLB team acknowledged the campaign on social media. As part of National Bullying Prevention Month, Spirit Day began in 2010 after a high school student Brittany McMillan created a Tumblr post asking other high school students to wear purple in recognition of the suicide crisis among LGBTQ+ youth.
Over the ensuing years, Spirit Day has become the “most visible annual LGBTQ+ anti-bullying campaign in the world,” according to GLAAD.
Subscribe to our newsletter for a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.The Cincinnati Reds were one of the 27 clubs that recognized the occasion. “The Reds join MLB in going purple today in honor of #SpiritDay!
We are proud to support LGBTQ youth and speak out against bullying,” the team posted Thursday. The nice, seemingly innocuous message drew the predictable ire of homophobes, who railed against the Reds and other teams for “subscribing to LGBTQ+ ideology…” or whatever silliness they spout.