To mark the event, Gowling WLG will be making charitable donations to the Canadian Centre for Gender and Sexual Diversity, and Diversity Role Models a UK-based LGBT charity. In addition, activities such as diversity and inclusion workshops on LGBT terminology and how to be an ally in the workplace, bake sales, message boards and forums for sharing anti-bullying tips and Day of Pink thoughts are also being held across the firm.
The International Day of Pink began in Canada in 2007 when two high school students from Nova Scotia witnessed a gay classmate who was wearing a pink shirt being bullied for his outfit and his sexual orientation. David Shepherd and Travis Price decided to purchase pink shirts and, a few days later, encouraged everyone else at their school to wear pink in solidarity. Shepherd and Price sparked an important conversation that day, and proved that by standing together we can challenge prejudice and put a stop to bullying.
Since then, the Day of Pink has become an international event inspiring schools, workplaces, communities and governments around the world to take a stand against bullying, discrimination, homophobia, transphobia and transmisogny. Each year, on the second Wednesday of April, millions of people wear pink as a symbol of their shared belief in diversity and acceptance.