Authors and Illustrators Unite for LGBT Youth
RSSBy Rocco Staino
The video is only four minutes and 52 seconds long, but the impression it leaves is lasting. Coe Booth, E. Lockhart, Ellen Hopkins, Laurie Halse Anderson, and 31 other big names in children's publishing have joined forces to create "It Gets Better: Authors and Illustrators Unite," as part of a global campaign to help lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) kids see that "love and happiness can be a reality in their future." Bildner reached out to his colleagues, and it didn't take long before Hopkins, author of Perfect (S & S, 2011), became the first on board. Soon after others followed, including Kathi Appelt, a National Book Award finalist for The Underneath (Atheneum, 2008), and Jay Asher, who wrote The Thirteen Reasons Why (Razorbill, 2007), a New York Times bestselling novel about teen suicide. "A few years ago, I dedicated a book to a teen reader struggling with his identity," says Bildner in the video's opening scene. "The dedication read: This one is for my friend Christian, the bravest kid I know. Hang in there, buddy. It gets better. I promise." The video goes on with heartfelt comments like those from Gordon Korman. "Bullying is the bully's problem, not yours," he says. "You know you're a great person. If someone feels like they have to tear you down for that, that's pathetic. Keep your head held high because it gets a lot better." And there's also the husband-and-wife team, Ted and Betsy Lewin. "If there's one thing in this world I despise, it's a bully," says Ted. "Me, too," adds Betsy. Lisa Yee proclaims, "You are amazing, and don't let anybody tell you otherwise." The It Gets Better Project started in September 2010, when syndicated columnist and author Dan Savage created a YouTube video with his partner, Terry Miller, in response to a number of student suicides as a result of bullying episodes in schools. Two months later, the It Gets Better Project turned into a global campaign, inspiring more than 10,000 user-created videos viewed over 35 million times. To date, the project has received submissions from celebrities, organizations, activists, politicians and media personalities, including President Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Anne Hathaway, Colin Farrell, and Ellen DeGeneres. Most recently, the San Francisco Giants posted to the site. "This is one of the best uses of the power of the Internet I've ever seen," says Bruce Colville, one of the authors who participated in the video, explaining that he loves the message of hope the video offers to young people who are fighting for their dignity and, in some cases, literally fighting for their lives. "I was thrilled when Phil asked me if I would be part of this," Colville adds. "Actually, I told him I would have been hurt if he hadn't asked!" Colville's short story, "Am I Blue?" (Am I Blue: Coming Out From the Silence 1994 edited by Marion Dane Bauer), has resonated with many kids struggling with their gender identity, and the author says this video offers another personal message to the same young people. Bildner enlisted the help of Jafe Paulino, a former student of his in New York City, and Paulino's friends, Gian Stone and Maverick Inman, to help with the video production. Paulino, who was in Bildner's eighth-grade class, is lead vocalist of the band, Viva Mayday, which performs the video's theme song, "Save My Soul." The song will be available as a free download soon. Stone is the band's drummer and Inman edited the video. In March 2011, the book, It Gets Better (Dutton, 2011), was published and includes some stories from the videos. Savage is the opening speaker at the American Library Association's annual conference in New Orleans on Friday, June 24.
Children's author Phil Bildner came up with the idea for creating the video after basketball star Kobe Bryant's anti-gay rant toward a referee in April. "It was time for me to walk my talk," says Bildner, author of the "Slugger" (S & S) series.
