What is National Coming Out Day? Here's how it started, what its goal is and how to celebrate

National Coming Out Day (NCOD) is a day of awareness and celebration for the LGBTQ community and its allies.

The annual holiday, which takes place on Oct. 11, encourages gays, lesbians, bisexuals, transgender people and other members of the LGBTQ community to come out of the closet, which is the metaphor the community has longed use to mean recognizing and revealing their authentic selves.

The aim of the holiday is simple: to demonstrate that LGBTQ people are everywhere.

Though LGBTQ people in the United States have made crucial legal and cultural gains in recent years, they still face significant barriers when it comes to homophobia, transphobia and/or other forms of discrimination based on sexual orientation and/or gender identity.

With literally hundreds of anti-LGBTQ bills introduced this year in legislatures in Florida, Tennessee, Texas and elsewhere in the U.S., honoring National Coming Out Day is more important than ever.

"Today we are facing the same challenges that made coming out and visibility imperative: hateful and dehumanizing legislation, court rulings that jeopardize our freedoms and embolden bigots who threaten our safety," Nadine Smith, executive director of Equality Florida, the state's largest LGBTQ advocacy organization, told TODAY.com in an email. She added that this year's observation is a "call to resistance" against those who are "manufacturing fear and stoking violence" against the LGBTQ community.

What is the purpose of National Coming Out Day?

National Coming Out Day encourages LGBTQ people to share their authentic selves with others, and to encourage and support other LGBTQ people who do the same.

The goal of the holiday is to create LGBTQ awareness and visibility.

When did National Coming Out Day originate?

National Coming Out Day was founded on October 11, 1988 by LGBTQ activists Robert Eichberg and Jean O’Lear.

The pair chose the date to honor the first anniversary of the 1987 March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights, a groundbreaking event in LGBTQ history.

According to his New York Times obituary, Eichberg, who died in 1995 at age 50 of complications from AIDS, said in a 1993 interview, “Most people think they don’t know anyone gay or lesbian, and in fact everybody does. It is imperative that we come out and let people know who we are and disabuse them of their fears and stereotypes.”

How does an LGBTQ person come out?

The coming out process is different for everyone — and because LGBTQ people come out so many times over the course of their lives, the process can change as time goes on.

The good news is that resources are available all over the internet.

The Human Rights Campaign, a national LGBTQ advocacy group, has a helpful Coming Out section on its website.

The Trevor Project, a national non-profit organization that supports young LGBTQ people, has written a Coming Out Handbook.

Is National Coming Out Day an official holiday?

Much like Pride Month in June, National Coming Out Day has been a holiday in the LGBTQ community since it was founded in 1988.

As such, it's been honored by world leaders, including President Joe Biden, who issued a statement of support to the LGBTQ community on Oct. 11, 2021.

In his message, Biden celebrated the courage of LGBTQ who “live their lives with pride, create community with open arms and hearts, and showcase the strength of being your authentic self."

“Today and every day, I want every member of the LGBTQ+ community to know that you are loved and accepted just the way you are — regardless of whether or not you’ve come out,” he added.

How can I celebrate National Coming Out Day?

While members of the LGBTQ community can participate in National Coming Out Day events across the U.S., they can also celebrate by simply living authentically and by encouraging others to do the same.

Allies of the community can also participate by visibly expressing their support of and their love for the LGBTQ people in their lives.

This story first appeared on TODAY.com. More from TODAY:

• Jada Pinkett Smith reveals she and Will Smith have been separated since 2016: Exclusive
• Kids are watching war on social media: Here’s what parents should know, and do
• 'Horrible parents': Mom and dad get shamed after sharing their Halloween candy tradition