It’s tape, albeit, multicolored tape. Black or white versions sell for about $3 at hockey shops around North America.

To many gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender hockey players, however, Pride Tape — a Kickstarter campaign led by a Canadian college professor — means much more.

“We’ve heard from so many people who left the sport because of homophobia or intolerance in the locker room,” Kristopher Wells, the faculty director of Institute for Sexual Minority Studies and Services at the University of Alberta, told USA TODAY Sports. “They’ve told us that if there was something like this when they were growing up, they wouldn’t have left the sport.”

The online campaign was launched last month and counts Edmonton Oilers defenseman Andrew Ference, and former NHL goaltender and current Los Angeles Kings coach Bill Ranford as backers.

The Kickstarter has until Feb. 4 to reach its goal of $39,000 and, as of Tuesday night, the campaign had more than $27,800 in backing.

If the goal is met, 10,000 rolls of the six-color stripe read tape that signifies LGBT pride and rights will be produced. About half of the tape will go to those who pledge at least $30 or donated to youth and community hockey programs. The remaining rolls of tape will be sold to the public.

“Making the tape is actually a complex process,” Wells said. “We have been working with companies who said it couldn’t be done before we kept pushing them. We’ve been able to find a supplier who can make us professional-grade tape.”

Wells said the response, especially in Canada, has been overwhelming. Several networks and billboard companies there have offered free advertising to promote the campaign. Pride Tape was even featured on Hockey Night in Canada earlier this month.

“We’ve had interest from NHL teams all the way down to the amateur and community-rink level,” Wells said.

Any proceeds from the sale of the tape would be split between You Can Play and the Institute for Sexual Minority Studies and Services at the University of Alberta. You Can Play — which advocates for inclusion of LGBT players, coaches and fans — was co-founded by Calgary Flames general manager Brian Burke, whose son, Brendan, came out months before he was killed in a car accident six years ago.

“Athletes have a lot of non-traditional ways of showing support whether it’s patches and stickers on helmets, lighting buildings for events, or, in this case special tape,” You Can Play spokesperson Brian Kitts said. “This is a fun, visible way to send a message that everyone’s welcome  as an athlete and a fan.”

Wells said despite gains in LGBT rights, many in the sport feel the need to remain closeted. He’s hopeful initiatives like Pride Tape will help change that.

“There are no out NHL players and we know they exist,” Wells said. “We established Pride Tape to help facilitate the conversation to make the sport more inclusive. Our young LGBT athletes are missing role models in professional sports. “We want this tape to send a message and we want that message to be universal.”