Nico
Established in December 2010, Purple Friday (Paarse Vrijdag) is an annual day of LGBTQIA+ solidarity in the Netherlands. It is held on the second Friday of December, when students, teachers, and allies wear purple to show visible support for LGBTQIA+ youth and to promote safe, inclusive school environments.
This year, educators and students celebrate Paarse Vrijdag on 12 December 2025.
Origins of Purple Friday
Inspired by Spirit Day, created by Canadian student Brittany McMillan in October 2010, Dutch student Nazmul Zaman decided to organize a similar campaign two months later. Both Spirit Day and Purple Friday use purple to represent the “spirit” stripe of the rainbow Pride flag. In the Netherlands, the national Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) Network coordinates Paarse Vrijdag, supported by COC Nederland, which is the country’s leading LGBTQIA+ rights organization, founded in 1946 and one of the oldest existing LGBTQ+ advocacy groups in the world.
What began as a small, organized action involving only a handful of schools has grown into a nationwide movement. Today, thousands of primary and secondary schools, universities, and youth organizations participate. Educators decorate classrooms in purple and students organize awareness events, discussions on inclusion, and activities that promote acceptance and understanding. In 2024, three-quarters of secondary schools took part; one in ten held full-scale celebrations of diversity, and many others offered additional lessons on LGBTQIA+ topics, diversity, and inclusion.
Ongoing challenges
Despite the Netherlands’ reputation as a global leader in LGBTQIA+ rights (it was the first country to legalize marriage equality in 2001), research continues to show that LGBTQIA+ youth face disproportionate levels of harassment, social exclusion, and mental health challenges. Further, a recent survey showed that only 43% of young people in Amsterdam understand that two people of the same sex can be in love. Paarse Vrijdag encourages communities to build safer, more affirming spaces for queer and trans youth.
Takeaways this Purple Friday
Purple Friday is both a celebration of inclusion and a reminder that equality requires ongoing compassion, education, and action. Educators and students advocate for acceptance on Paarse Vrijdag, push back against bullying and work together to establish schools as safer spaces where every young person can thrive.
Beginning in 2026, COC Nederland will move Purple Friday to October to avoid conflicts during busy Decembers.
For more information and educational resources, see COC Education’s page on Purple Friday.
Further reading
(Note: Many article titles have been translated into English from their original languages using Google Translate.)
- “Students wear purple against homophobia,” COC
- “Paarse Vrijdag: in solidarity with the LGBTIQA+ community,” Hodgeschool Utrecht
- “Resistance against Purple Friday is growing in schools: survey,” Dutch News
- “Dutch high school students wear purple on Friday to support LGBTQIA+ peers,” NL Times
- “Results Youth Health Monitor 2023,” Municipal Health Service Amsterdam
- “‘The Netherlands was progressive in terms of gay rights, but every year we slip further behind’,” Folia
