It Gets Better Project

Name	It Gets Better
Formation	2010
Logo
Caption	Screen capture of the It Gets Better website
Type	501(c)(3)
Founders	Dan Savage and Terry Miller
Area Served	Worldwide
Headquarters	Los Angeles, California, United States
Leader Title	CEO and Executive Director
Leader Name	Brian Wenke
Former Name	It Gets Better Project
Website	http://itgetsbetter.org

Project history

Then-U.S. President Barack Obama's video contribution to the It Gets Better Project (2010).
The It Gets Better Project was founded by Savage in response to the suicide of Billy Lucas and other teenagers who were bullied because they were gay or perceived to be, such as with Raymond Chase, Tyler Clementi, Ryan Halligan, Asher Brown, and Seth Walsh. Reflecting on Lucas' suicide in his Savage Love column, Savage wrote, "I wish I could have talked to this kid for five minutes. I wish I could have told Billy that it gets better. I wish I could have told him that, however bad things were, however isolated and alone he was, it gets better."

Former U.S. President Barack Obama lent his voice to the project and its anti-bullying message during its infancy. On October 21, 2010, Obama contributed his own video saying in part, "We've got to dispel this myth that bullying is just a normal rite of passage; that it's just 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 for every young person out there you need to know that if you're in trouble, there are caring adults who can help." President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama would later host an anti-bullying conference in March 2011. Google Chrome backed the project as well, promoting its YouTube channel and airing a video ad for the project on television; that ad's first appearance came during a May 3, 2011 episode of Glee.

Today, It Gets Better is the world's largest storytelling effort to empower LGBTQ+ youth. Since 2022, It Gets Better distributed about $1.5 million to middle and high schools throughout the United States and Canada to fund projects that uplift and empower LGBTQ+ students. In 2023, It Gets Better was the first of several LGBTQ+ nonprofits to leave Twitter/X, citing a surge of hate speech and misinformation targeting queer and trans youth. In 2024, the organization dropped the Project from its name to reflect its "growth from a viral movement to a more comprehensive support system for queer youth." It is now known as It Gets Better.

Book and television

It Gets Better: Coming Out, Overcoming Bullying, and Creating a Life Worth Living
In March 2011, E. P. Dutton published It Gets Better: Coming Out, Overcoming Bullying, and Creating a Life Worth Living, a book of essays edited by Dan Savage and Terry Miller that reflect the same theme as the web video project. The book contains more than 100 essays, either transcribed or expanded from the videos or original writings. Contributors include Jennifer Finney Boylan, Gregory Maguire, Meshell Ndegeocello, Michael Cunningham, Suze Orman, and David Sedaris. The book made the New York Times Best Seller list.

Two 1-hour It Gets Better TV specials, which focused on the project's mission and conveyed messages of support, aired in 2012. Broadcast on MTV and simulcast on LGBT-oriented sister network Logo, the specials had premiere airings on February 21 and October 9, 2012.

Global affiliates

It Gets Better has affiliate organizations in Paraguay, Peru, Chile, Guatemala, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Columbia, Panama, Argentina, Brazil, Portugal, Spain, Greece, Austria, Hungary, Russia, the United Kingdom, Canada, and India. The Peru, Chile, and Mexico organizations offer a service called Hora Segura (Safe Hour in English). These time slots have professionals volunteering to offer free psychological support. In Chile, this is provided through the Hora Segura app, while Mexico uses Meta's Messenger app. Peru uses both Messenger and WhatsApp.

Alongside six other LGBTQ organizations, the Chilean affiliate Todo Mejora (It Gets Better) formed the Front for Sexual Diversity in 2013. On the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia, the movement released their first public statement containing "proposals for the development of a fair, equal, plural and democratic society." In 2025, Todo Mejora was awarded the Human Rights Tulip by the Dutch government.

In 2018, It Gets Better Canada launched a petition to ban conversion therapy nationwide. The petition received over 58,000 signatures. In 2025, It Gets Better Canada and LG2 developed an app called GLO. The app provides a virtual pet and educational modules on topics like identifying stress and fighting cyberbullying. The app was created with funding from Canada's Department of Women and Gender Equality.

See also

• It Gets Better Mexico
• List of suicides which have been attributed to bullying

References

• It Gets Better, April 4, 2022, It Gets Better, en-US
• What is the It Gets Better Project?, itgetsbetter.org, 6 October 2010, 23 November 2010, dead, 15 August 2025
• Showing Gay Teens a Happy Future, The , New York Times, Parker-Pope, Tara, September 22, 2010
• Peter, Hartlaub, Dan Savage overwhelmed by gay outreach's response, 2010-10-08, dead, October 8, 2010, San Francisco Chronicle, 2010-10-09
• Dan Savage talks teens, straight people and It Gets Better, 15 February 2011, Xtra!, 8 February 2011, Noreen Fagan, 14 August 2011, dead
• President Obama: It Gets Better, YouTube, October 21, 2010
• Albanesius, Chloe, Obama, Google Make Anti-Gay Bullying 'It Gets Better' Videos, PCMag.com, 22 October 2010, 2010-10-22
• Meckler, Laura, Obama Joins "It Gets Better" Campaign., Washington Wire – WSJ, 22 October 2010, 2004-09-16
• Furlan, Julia, The 'It Gets Better Project' Turns the Spotlight on Anti-Gay Bullying, March 30, 2011, WNYC, March 22, 2011, dead, July 25, 2011
• "It Gets Better" to Get Governors Award, Television Academy, 2012-08-22, 2012-09-15
• GT Investigates – In This Issue, GayTimes, 2010-11-04, dead, 2010-11-14
• In suicide's wake, a message to gay teens: Hang on; you are not alone, St. Petersburg Times; Tampabay.com, 2 October 2010, 2010-10-16, October 5, 2010, dead
• Give 'Em Hope, Savage, Dan, Dan Savage, September 23, 2010, The Stranger, October 6, 2010, October 6, 2010, dead
• Obamas Focus on Antibullying Efforts, 11 March 2011, The New York Times
• Parr, Ben, May 4, 2011, Google Chrome Commercial Lets Gay Teens Know "It Gets Better", Mashable, February 3, 2021
• The It Gets Better Project: Empowering LGBTQ+ Youth Around the Globe, 2024-08-06, Grounds4Cause, en
• Better, It Gets, It Gets Better Announces Recipients of 2024-2025 Major Grants Initiative to Empower LGBTQ+ Students, 2025-12-28, www.prnewswire.com, en
• It Gets Better Steps Back From Twitter/X Over Hate Speech Concerns, 2024-08-06, www.advocate.com, en
• It Gets Better Project changes its name, 2024-08-06, www.advocate.com, en
• NPR, March 23, 2011, Dan Savage: For Gay Teens, Life 'Gets Better'
• The New York Times, April 10, 2011, Hardcover Nonfiction, Jennifer, Schuessler
• Second It Gets Better Special Full Episode, It Gets Better, en, 2017-09-23, September 23, 2017, dead
• 2023-09-26, Global Affiliates on Social Media, 2025-12-28, It Gets Better, en-US
• 2024-05-19, Hora Segura - It Gets Better México, 2025-12-28, itgetsbettermx.org, es
• Mejora, Fundación Todo, Hora Segura, 2025-12-28, www.todomejora.org, es-CL
• Perú, It Gets Better, Apoyo psicológico (Hora Segura), 2025-12-28, It Gets Better Perú, es
• Sepulveda, Monse, 2014-10-19, Chile's LGBT movement marches united, December 16, 2024, 2025-12-28, Waging Nonviolence, en-US, live
• Exteriores, Ministerio de Relaciones, Ministro van Klaveren se reúne con la Fundación Todo Mejora , , Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, 2025-12-28, www.minrel.gob.cl, es-CL
• 2018-12-21, Thousands of Canadians have signed petitions to ban conversion therapy, 2025-12-28, www.bbc.com, en-GB
• Canada, It Gets Better, IT GETS BETTER CANADA LAUNCHES NEW APP IN SUPPORT OF 2SLGBTQI+ YOUTH, 2025-12-28, www.newswire.ca, en

Further reading

External links