Patrick Schwarzenegger Joins Lady Gaga

Arnold Schwarzenegger's gorgeous and famous son, Patrick has taken on a new project.  A public service announcement to promote Lady Gaga's "Born This Way Foundation."  You can read more about it at The Advocate, and check out this behind-the-scenes video of Patrick for Entertainment Tonight.

 

Thank you Patrick!

Quoted - President Barack Obama for the It Gets Better Campaign

"Like all of you, I was shocked and saddened by the deaths of several young people who were bullied and taunted for being gay and who ultimately took their own lives. As a parent of two daughters, it breaks my heart. It's something that just shouldn't happen in this country. Now we've got to dispel this myth that bullying is just a normal rite of passage, that it's some inevitable part of growing up. It's not. We have an obligation to ensure that our schools are safe for all of our kids. And to every young person out there, you need to know that if you're in trouble, there are caring adults who can help. I don't know what it's like to be picked on for being gay, but I do know what it's like to grow up feeling that sometimes you don't belong. It's tough. And for a lot of kids the sense of being alone or apart, I know it can just wear on you. And when you're teased or bullied it can seem like somehow you have brought it on yourself for being different or for not fitting in with everybody else. But what I want to say is this: You are not alone, you didn't do anything wrong, you didn't do anything to deserve being bullied, and there's a whole world waiting for you filled with possibilities. There are people out there that love you and care about you just the way you are. And so, if you ever feel like because of bullying, because of what people are saying, that you are getting down on yourself, you've got to make sure to reach out to people you trust;  whether it's your parents, teachers, or folks that you know care about you just the way you are. You've got to reach out to them. Don't feel like you are in this by yourself. The other thing you need to know is things will get better, and more than that, with time you are going to see that your differences are a source of pride and a source of strength. You'll look back on the struggles you've faced with compassion and wisdom, and that's not just going to serve you, but it'll help you get involved and make this country a better place. It will mean that you'll be more likely to help fight discrimination, not just against LGBT Americans but discrimination in all its forms. It means you'll be more likely to understand personally and deeply why it's so important that as adults we set an example in our own lives and that we treat everybody with respect, that we are able to see the world through other people's eyes and stand in their shoes, that we never lose sight of what binds us together. As a nation, we're founded on the belief that all of us are equal and each of us deserves the freedom to pursue our own version of happiness, to make the most of our talents, to speak our minds, to not fit in; most of all, to be true to ourselves. That's the freedom that enriches all of us. That's what America is all about, and every day it gets better."

- President Barack Obama for the It Gets Better Campaign

Gay and Straight Teens Collaborate in the Making of a Lady Gaga's "Hair" Music Video

I get emotional over things like this, because it hits so close to home.  I remember growing up being bullied and tormented by the people I thought were my friends.  And here comes a classroom full of straight teens and gay teens showing us that "It Gets Better".  Thank you so much kiddos!

As most of us know, growing up isn't easy. Countless young people are faced with daily tormenting and bullying, causing them to feel isolated and alone. This is an especially harsh reality for LGBT kids and teens, who often hide their sexuality for fear of bullying. In many instances, gay and lesbian adolescents are taunted, sometimes even tortured, simply for being themselves.

In support of the It Gets Better Project, Colton James Boettcher's artistic vision takes shape in the form of a music video interpretation of Lady Gaga's song, Hair. Hair is about being yourself, being true to who you are; as the song exemplifies, "you are the spirit of your hair, it's all the glory you bare", YOU are your #hair.

Credits after the jump...

"What's Going On" Video Nears 8,000,000 Views

This video went viral last week.  It was all over Facebook, the blogoshphere, and practically all over the web.  It's poignant, meaningful, and it will make you cry.  It's heartbreaking that someone has to go through life feeling this way.  As parents, how can we allow this sort of thing to go on?  Was carrying your child for 9 months just a joke?

It really perturbs me to say this, but why would people condemn this video?  If you were to read some of the hateful comments people posted on this video, it would sicken you.  At least I hope it would.  

I don't get Christians, or the ones who say they "wholeheartedly" believe in God.  These same people mentioned God in their comments, yet added filthy language while posting their hateful messages at the same time.

People go so far as to say the video was a fake, that Jonah was crying fake tears and that he's just a "faggot" wanting attention.  Really?  Are you people that ignorant?  And if it was? So what!  You're still missing the message behind it. This goes on every day.  Wouldn't you want your kids to be upfront with you?  Not afraid to tell you anything.  Instead they hide in shame because you tell them, they're screwed up, need therapy or simply because carrying them for 9 months really was a joke.

Gay Ads That Matter - Issue No. 008 - A Skateboarder's Love

When the commercial down below first aired, the amount of backlash from the conservative right was endless.  This went on for months, even years.  I have to hand it to MTV for standing their ground, for being big supporters of anti-discrimination.  And since then, we have watched as ABC, NBC, CBS, and yes, even FOX have been showing programming directed at gay youth, bullying, and teen suicides.

In the Following Video two serious-looking young guys in baseball caps arrive with a big tool kit, blocks of wood and some blueprints. They begin sawing, drilling and hammering.

They build a half-pipe for skateboarding and, when it's complete, give each other a macho handshake and then pull each other forward for a sensual kiss. The text then offers, "You never know."

The young audience of MTV of course respects the idea of skaters, but would not expect them to be gay. The kiss is an unexpected juxtaposition against the macho handshake, thus breaking stereotypes.

MTV has set the gold standard among all advertisers for the most ads that refer to the community, more than 25 since 1996, in addition to carrying numerous gay ads from other companies and running its own supportive gay-inclusive programming.  Check out the commercial below.

Post Secret Fridays - Issue 083

PostSecret is an ongoing community art project where people mail in their secrets anonymously on one side of a homemade postcard.

 

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Quoted - Zachary Quinto on Coming Out Earlier Today

"When i found out that jamey rodemeyer killed himself - i felt deeply troubled.  but when i found out that jamey rodemeyer had made an it gets better video only months before taking his own life - i felt indescribable despair.  i also made an it gets better video last year - in the wake of the senseless and tragic gay teen suicides that were sweeping the nation at the time.  but in light of jamey's death - it became clear to me in an instant that living a gay life without publicly acknowledging it - is simply not enough to make any significant contribution to the immense work that lies ahead on the road to complete equality.  our society needs to recognize the unstoppable momentum toward unequivocal civil equality for every gay lesbian bisexual and transgendered citizen of this country.  gay kids need to stop killing themselves because they are made to feel worthless by cruel and relentless bullying.  parents need to teach their children principles of respect and acceptance.  we are witnessing an enormous shift of collective consciousness throughout the world.  we are at the precipice of great transformation within our culture and government.  i believe in the power of intention to change the landscape of our society - and it is my intention to live an authentic life of compassion and integrity and action.  jamey rodemeyer's life changed mine.  and while his death only makes me wish that i had done this sooner - i am eternally grateful to him for being the catalyst for change within me.  now i can only hope to serve as the same catalyst for even one other person in this world.  that - i believe - is all that we can ask of ourselves and of each other." zq.

-By Zachary Quinto on October 16, 2011 8:26 AM

The Bully Project Trailer

click to enlarge

If you're reading this I want you to click on that picture above and read what I circled in Red.  If your child has to resort to posting videos on YouTube and make a similar statement, you're doing something wrong.

I have two short sentences for you - If you're a parent, you should know better.  If you're a bully, blame your parents.

I grew up being bullied by classmates.  I know how it feels to be made fun of, picked on, hit, kicked, spit on, laughed at, the list goes on.  I can't even count the number of times I contemplated suicide, and if you know me personally today, you would never have thought that.  

You can also be bullied later in life as well. If you're in a relationship where your partner makes fun of you in front of other people, or mocks you for gaining weight, that's a bully.  If you make jokes about the person you love and then say, "I was just playing" - You're a bully.

"More than 18 million young people across the US will be bullied this year. This alarming documentary takes us into the disquieting day-to-day lives of five kids and their families over the course of a school year. Two families are left devastated by their sons' suicide, while one mother faces her 14-year-old daughter's incarceration after she threatens her bullies with a gun. Rare access to the Sioux City Community School District captures up close and disturbing 'on the ground' footage of bullying in classrooms, playgrounds, cafeterias, and school buses. Kids who are made into outcasts at school become the film's heroes as they defend their right to be different and courageously give testimony to the trauma and dangers of severe bullying. " - The Bully Project

Kid Who Body-slammed His Bully Speaks Out

After years of tormenting and being picked on, 15-year old Casey Heynes snapped, and body-slammed his bully onto concrete.  The video, which I blogged about last week, became an internet sensation.

In an interview last night, Casey stated he had been taunted for years, because of his weight, and been duct-taped to a pole at one time.   He said that while he was glad for the support, he had actually contemplated suicide last year.

In the past, he usually let bygones, be bygones, and never retaliated for what these boys did to him.  But something happened to him that fateful day when he grabbed his bully and slammed him to the ground.  Casey just snapped.

"He just came up out of nowhere and grabbed me by the shirt and then he punched me in the face. Then he went for a second hit, and I blocked it," Casey recounted.

"The third hit, I don't know if he connected, and then the fourth and fifth hit me, and then I actually snapped and grabbed him," he said.

Catch the interview here, and decide, should Casey be punished for what he did?

Kid Can't Take It Any Longer and Body Slams His Bully

How much can a kid take?  How long before the ramifications of a bully's actions take an affect on a child?  I wasn't bullied often, probably more so from family members than schoolmates.  In either case, while I don't condone violence, defending oneself is extremely important.  This kid allowed the bully to berate and punch him several times; the end result was the bully getting what he asked for.  True, the situation could have been more serious, but what was the kid to do?  He couldn't take it any longer, and resorted to body slamming him.

 

Over the past few months we have been hearing stories of teenage boys and/or girls committing suicide.  All this, due to being bullied throughout their childhood and with the inability to cope with the humiliation any longer.  How would you feel if you're children were being mistreated or picked on in school? Would you defend your sister or brother if they were ridiculed and laughed at, or kicked and spit on?  Bullying can carry on to adulthood as well.  I have family that still pick on each other to this day, and these are 30 or 40 year old men. Seriously, grow up people. Bullying is not fun.  And especially when it's directed at you.

You're Amazing Just The Way You Are and The Two Schools Who Told You So

So what do you do when you want to get a message across?

Take your jacket off in the middle of shopping mall, take everyone by surprise and perform a dance routine.

To throw their support against anti-bullying, that's exactly what 2 schools in Canada did.  They all sported pink t-shirts with the word, 'Acceptance' in large, bold letters with some script underneath it saying, "You're Amazing Just The Way You Are."  In reference to the Bruno Mars song, "Just The Way You Are," playing in the background.

Good job kiddos, I loved it.