Day of Pink
1) School/community name: Central Kings Rural High School, Cambridge Nova Scotia.
2) Title of project/initiative: Day of Pink
3) Brief description/summary of project: Day of Pink (Sea of Pink) was born when a youth in a high school in Cambridge, Nova Scotia was bullied because he wore a pink shirt to school. His fellow students decided to stand up to bullying; and hundreds of students came to school wearing pink to show support for diversity and stopping discrimination, bullying and homophobia, which they called “sea of pink”.
Moved by this event, the National Capital Region GSA (Gay-Straight Alliance) Network (an initiative by Jer’s Vision: Canada’s Youth Diversity Initiative) decided to share this day with the world and created the International Day of Pink; it is recognized all across Canada and takes place every April 14th.
4) What age range did this project/initiative target? Your age does not matter! Everyone is encouraged to take action on the International Day of Pink.
5) What cost, if any, was involved? No cost at all, it’s totally free! You just have to wear pink!
6) What approval had to be obtained for the project/initiative to be carried out (for example, was approval needed from a teacher, the school principal, city council, etc.)? If you would like your school to participate in the Day of Pink, you should discuss it with a teacher or the principal. With their help, you can advertise and plan activities to ensure your entire school is aware and participates.
7) What problems were this project/initiative designed to address? It aims to reduce and even eliminate discrimination, bullying and homophobia.
8) Who organized/ran this initiative? It began with two youth in Cambridge Nova Scotia, and now youth across the country are joining in every April 14th.
9) What were the main responsibilities/tasks of the leaders/organizers? Organize your school or community to wear pink on the International Day of Pink.
10) What were the goals? The main goal is to encourage youth to wear pink to show their support to end discrimination, bullying and homophobia in their school and community
11) Were these goals achieved? Yes they were. Our website tracked over 6.2 people who wore pink to stop bulling, discrimination and homophobia on the Day of Pink. In addition to wearing pink youth organized event like movie nights, and discussions where they got the dialogue about diversity going and worked to find solutions for their community and school
12) How did the initiative achieve these goals? By raising awareness about bullying, discrimination and homophobia, it teaches everyone to respect each other and be open and accepting. It also engages youth to talk about these issues.
13) How did this initiative benefit the school or community? The Day of Pink benefits the community by raising awareness about how students can address bulling and discrimination, and empowering them to promote diversity.
14) Any additional information about this project/initiative: For more information, please visit the website: Day of pink
