Time Out: I'm Here To Tell You It Does Get Better

Monday, 18 October 2010 19:36 | Written by Byron

BETTER, YOU BET: I first heard about Dan Savage's "It Gets Better" Project a little over a week ago. Inspired by the rash of recent suicides by gay youth, specifically the death of 15-year-old Indiana teenager Billy Lucas, the project allows LGBT adults to share with gay teens their stories about the fact that life does indeed "get better."

Nationally it has inspired everyone from Project Runway's Tim Gunn to Ke$ha to Fort Worth, Texas Councilman Joel Burns to contribute videos to the project. Locally it has even inspired our own mayor, Sam Adams, to add to his contribution to the mix.

I wasn't planning on doing one of these videos myself (especially after Councilman Burns moving testimony) but then I did my stint—as I always do every Thursday—on The Cort and Fatboy Show podcast. Instead of chirping on about what celebs are currently in Portland, we talked about bullying and being gay, and well, it's not our usual show. You can hear it for yourself here. And, yes, if you are at work, you should probably wear headphones.

After that show I received emails, really great emails, and I plan to share some of them with you over the next week.

But right now, all I want to do is talk to those people who I know are out there. The ones who listen to the show and think I am the only gay person they know. I also want to talk to my gay friends, especially the young ones, struggling with what they do or don't know about themselves. I am here to tell you it gets better.

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Comments (3)

|137.53.15.xxx |2010-10-19 07:34:19 Mary Rarick - Thank you!

Byron,

Yours is, without a doubt, the most heart-felt "It's Get Better" video I've seen. While my son, a high school junior, doesn't identify as gay, he's had to deal with a lot of bullying over the years because he's different. I intend to show him your video to reassure him that it does get better.

Thank you.

Mary
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|70.89.184.xxx |2010-10-19 09:39:41 Andrew Plambeck - Thank you

Thanks for doing this, Byron. This "straight ally" is very grateful. The bullying, the stigma has to end.

Thank you.
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|67.161.72.xxx |2010-10-19 20:13:58 Nita Howard - Thank You!

Byron,

Thank you for doing this. I have always said that no one in this world should ever have to endure the pain of feeling alone, unaccepted, misunderstood... Please continue to reach out and educate, you're doing the greater good my friend. There's a special place in heaven with your name on it...
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