The Disability Federation of Ireland is asking for support for this year’s Purple Lights event, which takes place on 3 December to mark United Nations International Day of Persons with Disabilities.

The theme of this year’s event is invisible disability, and the organisation says it has never been more important to be aware of the many people with compromised immune systems or various lung diseases.

“Their disability is invisible, but your support need not be. They really need space and extra consideration during this pandemic,” the federation says.

How to get involved

It says there are more than 514,000 people with invisible disabilities, including Purple Lights founder Gary Kearney, who was left for dead on O’Connell Street Dublin after an unprovoked attack left him with a brain injury.

The Disability Federation of Ireland is asking people to take a number of steps to get involved in this year’s campaign:

• Contact your building manager to find out how you can turn purple on 3 December with the flick of a switch,
• Smaller organisations and offices can get a get a purple filter for outside lighting for around €20 by contacting Tomás at sales@stagelightingcentre.com,
• People working from home can also light up virtual meetings by turning their background purple or simply wearing something purple,
• People can also turn their own homes purple by simply applying a free filter to any photos.