7 thoughts on “Joel Burns tells gay teens: It gets better”
25 years ago, Australia’s prime minister cried on prime time TV when he told the nation about his heroin-addicted daughter. We were all stunned at the time by his display of candour and emotion.
Joel is whole ‘nother level. His authenticity, compassion and engagement are what real ‘power’ looks like.
Thank you Joel for having the courage to reveal your big heart to the world.
Fe,
Thank you – i sincerely hope you are right. There is an entire new generation whose well being and potential are at stake. They are the future of our kind on this planet. Few things more important than that.
Somehow, I feel some great weight is being lifted. Like people don’t want to shoulder anymore of the bullshit that’s been thrust on them. I am so moved by what Joel Burns has done. This time, this autumn feels like some kind of clearing.
Joel is a friend of mine from back home. He’s a good guy, and this was obviously a very moving speech.
Lawrence O’Donnell played the whole thing on his primetime MSNBC program last night, that’s how I found out it exists…
and thank you for posting this. it truly is moving.
and such sweet, sweet faces on all of those kids…
apparently a whole video campaign on youtube has formed around that rallying cry. the following is from mashable.com:
“A couple of weeks ago, sex columnist and LGBT activist Dan Savage announced the launch of “It Gets Better,” a YouTube project designed to give hope to gay, lesbian and transgendered teens facing discrimination and bullying. Now even more celebrities and activists have stepped forward with words of encouragement.
Savage’s YouTube channel has accumulated dozens of inspiring messages from people all over the country, but not all of these videos are explicitly part of his campaign. The messages from Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-a-Long Blog) and Ellen DeGeneres follow the lead set by Savage, though. The former appeared on Ellen’s show, and the latter was sponsored by MTV.
The social media and video campaign was initiated in response to increasing reports of gay teens committing suicide in the wake of extreme bullying and discrimination from their peers. The message: Life seems difficult now, but there are greater opportunities to live openly without fear of abuse just a few years down the line, so it’s important not to lose hope.”
25 years ago, Australia’s prime minister cried on prime time TV when he told the nation about his heroin-addicted daughter. We were all stunned at the time by his display of candour and emotion.
Joel is whole ‘nother level. His authenticity, compassion and engagement are what real ‘power’ looks like.
Thank you Joel for having the courage to reveal your big heart to the world.
Fe,
Thank you – i sincerely hope you are right. There is an entire new generation whose well being and potential are at stake. They are the future of our kind on this planet. Few things more important than that.
Somehow, I feel some great weight is being lifted. Like people don’t want to shoulder anymore of the bullshit that’s been thrust on them. I am so moved by what Joel Burns has done. This time, this autumn feels like some kind of clearing.
Joel is a friend of mine from back home. He’s a good guy, and this was obviously a very moving speech.
Lawrence O’Donnell played the whole thing on his primetime MSNBC program last night, that’s how I found out it exists…
and thank you for posting this. it truly is moving.
and such sweet, sweet faces on all of those kids…
apparently a whole video campaign on youtube has formed around that rallying cry. the following is from mashable.com:
“A couple of weeks ago, sex columnist and LGBT activist Dan Savage announced the launch of “It Gets Better,” a YouTube project designed to give hope to gay, lesbian and transgendered teens facing discrimination and bullying. Now even more celebrities and activists have stepped forward with words of encouragement.
Savage’s YouTube channel has accumulated dozens of inspiring messages from people all over the country, but not all of these videos are explicitly part of his campaign. The messages from Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-a-Long Blog) and Ellen DeGeneres follow the lead set by Savage, though. The former appeared on Ellen’s show, and the latter was sponsored by MTV.
The social media and video campaign was initiated in response to increasing reports of gay teens committing suicide in the wake of extreme bullying and discrimination from their peers. The message: Life seems difficult now, but there are greater opportunities to live openly without fear of abuse just a few years down the line, so it’s important not to lose hope.”
here is the link to the youtube project:
http://www.youtube.com/user/itgetsbetterproject