What Does The Empathy Symbol Stand For?

The Empathy Symbol stands for two “sides” reaching out to each other, and opening up to try to truly understand the other’s experiences and feelings. It could be two groups of people: men and women, blacks and whites, Jews and Muslims, fundamentalist Christians and atheists, Israelis and Palestinians, gays and straights, old and young, able-bodied and disabled, immigrants and native-born, and so on; or it could be two individuals: spouses, neighbors, co-workers, etc.

The Original Empathy Symbol, created in 1973

People have asked about the origins of the empathy symbol. I was a college student, active in the anti-Vietnam war movement. I was contemplating the peace symbol I was wearing, when suddenly the idea for the empathy symbol popped into my head, full-blown. It felt as though it had been given to me, and I have felt spiritually charged to bring it to the world ever since. Deb Ellsworth

Featured Empathy Promoter

The best way to increase empathy for and acceptance of people who have been marginalized, or even demonized, is by creating opportunities for people to get to know them as full human beings.  It is much harder to hate someone you know, even if that is only through the media. People relate to characters on TV shows and in movies—they are real people for viewers. Even though 71% of people say they have not met a transgender person, through media that number can be raised.

We’ve come a long way since the 1990s, when Ellen DeGeneres was pretty much the sole representative of the entire LGBTQ community. To name just a few of the many popular shows that include fully complex LGBTQ characters: The Last of Us, Yellowjackets, Abbott Elementary, Quantum Leap, Severance. The Umbrella Academy not only featured a main character who transitioned from one season to the next, the actor who played that character, Elliot Page, also transitioned in real life.

GLAAD stands for Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation. It was founded in 1985, and is the most prominent world-wide advocate for truthful representation of LGBTQ persons. This non-profit organization provides consultation for the media, including movie studios, TV productions, online media, and gaming, as well as in factual reporting in news outlets, podcasts, etc. They seek to ensure fair, accurate and respectful portrayal of LGBTQ people in all media. GLAAD gives annual awards, as well as continuing real-time coverage of LGBTQ issues in the news.

As is true for all stereotyped groups, it was until recently acceptable and common to portray gay people in the media with broad stereotypes, rather than as individual human beings with full lives. GLAAD has done an outstanding job of changing that, and it makes a huge difference. The GLAAD Accountability Project monitors and documents public figures and groups that spread misinformation and false rhetoric against LGBTQ people, youth, and allies. The Entertainment Media Program monitors film, television, music, and related entertainment media to ensure inclusive, diverse and accurate portrayals of the LGBTQ community. Their annual Where We Are on TV report is extensive and thorough.

GLAAD says, “LGBTQ inclusion in entertainment is important to more than two in five of all American adults. WPP found that super majorities of LGBTQ and non-LGBTQ 18-24 year olds actively seek out queer inclusive media. Key younger audiences are looking for stories and characters that truly reflect themselves, their friends, family and the world around them.”

GLAAD describes its work as “Leading the conversation. Shaping the media narrative. Changing the culture. That’s how GLAAD accelerates acceptance for LGBTQ people.” What could be more important than that?

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