Hillary Clinton and Tim Kaine on Tuesday helped mark National Coming Out Day, the annual LGBT awareness day first observed in 1988.

“Coming out often takes incredible courage,” Clinton tweeted. “On #NationalComingOutDay, let's honor that courage by showing LGBT Americans we're with them.”

“You have millions of allies who will always have your back. I am one of them,” she added in a separate message.

In an interview with ATTN:, Clinton's running mate, Virginia Senator Tim Kaine, shared why he believes the day is important.

National Coming Out Day is important because we need to let LGBT youth know that they should be proud of who they are, Kaine said: “You're made the way you're made for a reason … celebrate that and accept it.”

Calling coming out “one of the most powerful forces in the fight for LGBT equality,” the Democratic National Committee said in a press release that “when someone decides to come out as member of the LGBT community, it gives their friends, family, loved ones and neighbors a personal reason to support LGBT rights, and it inspires more members and allies of the LGBT community to stand up for what is right, even in the face of discrimination, bigotry and violence.”