In light of the 4 suicides of gay teens in the past week, Dan Savage has launched the "It Gets Better" project. Using youtube, the general public can post videos here about their experiences of being gay in school and how things improve with time. For more information, his article can be found at this link where he talks about the aims of the project. Some fantastic videos have been posted, and hundreds have been submitted over the past few days. I thought this would be a great place for us to voice our own thoughts on the matter for teens, whether through videos or simply comments. Neil Patrick Harris has posted one here and below is one of the more popular videos so far. I'm sure it'll appeal to a few of the guys.
Such a brilliant idea! I saw the first post that the guys who set it up did and it was just this really nice life affirming video!
Was thinking that earlier, well actually i was thinking that GC posters should just do it seperately anyways, or as couples; as I'm sure there's a good few out there!
Chris Crocker (of the "Leave Britney Alone" youtube fame) made this video in response to the campaign. Pretty clever.
I guess what I'm trying to get at is that although Chris' first video was more than a little odd (it just has nothing to do with this issue anyway), he's using the homophobic slurs against him to illustrate a point. I simply can't imagine how he felt after all those horrific comments were made about him, I'm sure other teens feel likewise. Whilst I can't say that I have a lot in common with him, I think it's good to clarify that the people who make these comments have their own issues and it's no reflection on you. Whatever you might say about his Britney obsession, you can't deny that he's a part of "youtube pop culture" with access to a young, influential demographic. I thought the comment "Why don't you focus on how f***ing psychologically damaged the people who leave hate on my page are?" is something that teens will actually be able to relate to. It may not be articulate and he's certainly not the next MLK but I still think it has some potential to affect change.
OMG! How much better does Chris Crocker look when he's not trying to be Britney Spears! See, I knew he could look nicer. =P But, I digress. Well, sort of. This 'It Gets Better' campaign is so wonderful, actually. High-profile Youtubers and other such celebrities sending out a message to those suicidal teens that life will get better for them. That is such a noble cause. Too often, we hear of gay teenagers who commit suicide because the pressures of adolescence are too great for them. Adolescence is a difficult and confusing time in any person's life (I was certainly glad to see the back of it), and to be something other than straight on top of that complicates things immeasurably. It's so important that these poor people know that life will be good for them. There are people out there who will see those people for who they really are, who will be able to see the goodness in them and the glorious light inside them, waiting to be let out. I really admire the people who set this up, and it's so nice to think that it will save lives. Every human life is important and is worth saving, and I can't imagine how rotten one must be inside to drive some poor young gay person to committing suicide.
It's so heartening to see this campaign taking off so much and going all the way to most powerful man in the world! I really hope troubled people everywhere listen to the words and accept that things do indeed get better.
Don't they have slides and everything FUN in their workplace? Think I saw something on tv before about that.! It'd be sooo much fun to work there.
Fair dues! I think alot more A listers are going along with Perez Hilton and making awarness also, people such as P!nk, Britney, Beyonce, Gaga, etc. That should be huge.
My God.... I keep expecting them to have a Google sign fall off the wall showing a Globex sign, and have Hank Scorpio walk by in the background.
