I first became aware of the It Gets Better movement from a viral video back in October 2010. Joel Burns, an elected official, made a speech at a Fort Worth, TX city council meeting. He had been deeply troubled by several gay teens committing suicide and had a personal message he felt compelled to share with other teens that might be experiencing the same emotional pain. You can check out this powerful speech on YouTube.
I honestly don’t know if he has any connection to the formal It Gets Better organization but, according to their website, they started up the month before Joel’s speech. Since that time, they have produced and collected many inspirational videos, from famous people and regular people, about why, even when things seem so hard as an LGBTQ youth, you need to hold on because when you grow up and are an adult, you can chart your own course, find a community that supports you for you, and feel like life is worth living.