https://www.austinchronicle.com/daily/qmmunity/2013-02-07/it-gets-better-today/

It Gets Better… Today!

By Liz Williams, February 7, 2013, 12:58pm, Qmmunity

The It Gets Better team crashes into Austin today, 4pm at the Long Center. Be part of the community discussion… and yes, the musical!

Responding to the glut of teen suicides over bullying, Dan Savage and Terry Miller founded the It Gets Better Project, uploading messages of hope to YouTube, to be scattered across the World Wide Web. Within a week, 200 of these video missives had been uploaded. Celebrities including President Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, professional athletes, and thousands of LGBTQers and allies have since lent their voices to the video cause.

The Long Center will be hosting a residency for It Gets Better in September. Tonight they host a community discussion for individuals and organizations. Yes, there will be wine and cheese, but more importantly a conversation about how to impact the Austin community.

There's lots to discuss – for starters, the name "It Gets Better." During a time of the year in which we celebrate MLK, Rosa Parks, and Lincoln's birthday, waiting for things to get better smacks to some of the type of "keep your eyes down and your voice quiet" passiveness that isolates kids in the first place. The message of hope is in the right place but active activism, Actually Making It Better is arguably the goal. Obviously, the It Gets Better campaign has put the spotlight on an issue in need of some illumination, but it is but one step. Tonight's forum provides the opportunity to discuss how to take the message forward in to the fall residency.

So join the pledge and let your voice be heard:

"Everyone deserves to be respected for who they are. I pledge to spread this message to my friends, family and neighbors. I'll speak up against hate and intolerance whenever I see it, at school and at work. I'll provide hope for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and other bullied teens by letting them know that it gets better."

RSVP to aguevara@thelongcenter.org