SEATTLE, WASHINGTON-
Though only a couple of weeks old, the “It Gets Better” national video campaign has taken on a life of its own as thousands of homemade videos of testimonials from gay or straight, young and old alike have posted their videos on YouTube. Currently, over 100,000 videos have become part of the campaign. The “It Gets Better” campaign was founded by columnist, Dan Savage in response to the suicide of Billy Lucas and a number of other teenagers who killed themselves due to anti-gay bullying. Its goal is to prevent suicide among LGBT youth by having gay adults convey the message that these teens’ lives will improve.
The project has grown rapidly, with over 200 videos uploaded in the first week from adults of all sexual orientations including many celebrities. The project’s YouTube channel reached the 650 video limit in the next week, and is now organized on its own website, the “It Gets Better Project”. Recently, videos to the project have been submitted by Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.