Today is #SpiritDay! Time to bring out your purple clothing!
I am a mom to a wonderful daughter who is part of the LGBTQ+ community. She is so outgoing and loves life in general. I am glad that she is being raised in a society, that, for the most part supports this community. While she is the typical teen, she will also give you the shirt off her back if you needed it. She is very compassionate and sensitive and at times has even reeled me back in when I go into a rant. She knows no enemy. Just pity for those who live life in fear of what they don’t understand. She understands that people may not agree with this lifestyle and that’s ok. It’s their beliefs and she doesn’t push her lifestyle on others.
I keep referring to her as she and her. She accepts it from family with understanding. She knows that we all love and support her. Heck, one of my sisters hugs her and refers to her as “my little rainbow” :). My daughter Ash doesn’t identify with a gender. There are days she feels feminine, but, others she feels more masculine. There are days she feels feminine but wishes she was wearing a binder. She prefers the they/them pronouns. Her friends refer to her as they/them because they are more adaptable that way than most adults are.
But, today is a great day to show how accepting people are in society. GLAAD and Toyota is promoting #SpiritDay and encourage other supporters to wear purple. Can I tell you, I am a HORRIBLE mother. I do not own anything purple and I MUST rectify this. I would wear purple everyday to show I support my daughter.
Some facts from GLAAD:
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (StopBullying.gov), bullying is “unwanted, aggressive behavior among school-aged children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance.” Bullying can include verbal harassment, physical harm, social exclusion, and cyber threats. Bullying behaviors are repeatable, targeted, and come with long-lasting consequences.
Since 1999, the Gay, Lesbian, Straight Education Network (GLSEN) has assessed the safety of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) students in grades six to twelve in its National School Climate Survey. The 2013 eighth biennial report of the National School Climate Survey reached 7,898 students between the ages of 13 and 21 from all 50 states and the District of Columbia, and found the following on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) students:
For the most part, Ash’s school is fairly tolerant. They have a Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) group. She’s said she’s had a few older kids refer to her as “fagot” in school, but, no physical altercations. Her father and I tend to keep an eye on things on her social media sites and keep up on her moods to make sure she’s ok. If we feel that she needs counseling, we don’t hesitate to get her to a counselor.
She is very passionate about the LGBTQ+ community and their rights for gender expression. I wish I had even HALF of her passion for something.
I won’t ask the standard question at the end. I’ll leave it as is, because, like my daughter, I do not push my beliefs on others. Everyone has a right to live their life based on their beliefs. We love them no matter what.
Vintage Roots and Hippie Wings 
21 responses to “Purple it up! It’s Anti-Bullying Day. #SpiritDay”
Bullying behavior is a problem among kids and adults. So much of what people experience is others trying to shame them or force their will on others. Thanks for sharing your experience.
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I’m glad that bullying is being addressed and society is becoming more accepting of individuals who are not just like them. We still have a long way to go, but having anti-bullying days and raising awareness shows we’re moving forward!
I only have one purple top. lol
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This is a great post indeed and I am so glad you support your daughter. We all need to support our children in their life decisions. Bullying is something that is being recognized more today than ever before. Thanks for sharing your and your daughters story along with spreading awareness of bullying.
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I don’t think I have any clothing that is purple, but I’m all for anti-bullying day! We must all work together to put an end to bullying.
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I saw a lot of purple today on Facebook and didn’t know why! Thanks for sharing this and letting us know. Bullying is so tragic.
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I wish there was a way to permanently stop bullying, but i fear it will always exist. Ill gladly wear purple for anti-bullying day.
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Glad that your daughter feels loved and supported for being herself-that’s how all kids should feel-unconditional love-no matter what. Anti-bullying awareness is so important and I have lots of purple as its my favorite color!
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It is amazing that your child has found their identity and shared it with the people who truly love them. I wish everyone could embrace their loved ones sexuality as well as your family & friends have.
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Your daughter sounds very special.
And this is such an important topic coming forward in our society today, as can be witnessed in the news, including elections.
I detest bullying and am for almost any measure to eliminate it.
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It’s so wonderful to hear that you support your child with everything that they do. I know it must be hard, but hopefully with family and friends supporting them, they will be just fine! Now I need to find some purple!
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Hi Jacqui,
Beautiful post. With negative things like cyberbullying so prevalent nowadays, it’s important to focus on living in the moment with family. It’s the precious moments together that can help anyone suffering from bullying.
Best of luck,
Dennis
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It is so wonderful to have support for our children. Bullying is real and it sucks. I am glad to see that we discuss it more and help find ways to support our future generation of adults!
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What a beautiful child you’re raising, strong in they/them beliefs which is good. Society needs more people like her and we all need to stand up to bullying behaviour
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Bullying has always been around and it still exist. We need to put a solid end to it.
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I’m glad there is a day set aside to talk about bullying. Bullying sucks, especially when people are hiding behind computers!!
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Everyone needs to stand against bullying. This is a great way to do it.
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This is a great post. Bullying is a real problem for teens and it needs to be addressed more often and taken more seriously. Thanks for bringing attention to this issue and sharing your personal beliefs.
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Wonderful post!
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Love this post! I was bullied a lot as a little kid and absolutely hated it. Bullying is definitely an issue that needs to be addressed more frequently. Thank you for sharing this! xo, sharon
http://www.stylelullaby.com/fashion/all-about-the-flannel/
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Wow your daughter is lucky to have you as parents. Getting that kind of support from home is so important
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I like the saying, “live and let live.” That speaks a lot to me on so many levels and it has changed the way I understand and accept people for who they choose to be, especially the ones that are close to me. We should all work together to put an end to bullying.
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