Over recent years many LGBT people have tried to reach out to the youth within our community to let them know that they can have a full and wonderful life, no matter what homophobia they may suffer or witness at school, or at home.  There has been the We Give a Damn campaign which does exactly what it says on the tin.  There has been the ThinkB4YouSpeak campaign which highlights the need to stop using the word “gay” to mean weak or stupid.  Perhaps the most well known would be the It Gets Better campaign, which is linked to the inspirational Trevor Project.  I don’t doubt for a moment that these initiatives have not only educated our straight brothers and sisters but have saved lives and given countless LGBTs hope.  Their influence can not be overestimated as young LGBT people are bullied and marginalised even in the 21st century.  Many celebrities, gay and straight have participated, more power to them.  Even Obama made an It Gets Better video, recenly followed by the US Senate.

However, when you look at these projects there does seem to be an omission.  Unfortunately, it seems young straight men are not being specifically targeted, as they are reported as being the main bullies.  One group has moved to fill this gap, Straight But Not Narrow say

It’s an unfortunate reality that most of the bullying and harassment that gay teens face comes from them (young, straight males). It is for this reason that we are building a campaign that is primarily directed to the young, straight male by using comedy and their peers to positively influence their views on LGBT teens

Again many celebs are pitching in, Glee’s Cory Meredith being the latest to ad his voice to the chorus, which also includes The Kids Are All Right star Josh Hutcherson.  It’s great to see the straight community become involved, not just by taking part in “gay-run” projects but in taking the onus on themselves to ad their weight to the movement which is trying to help young LGBT’s see the light at the end of the tunnel.  Or in this case, let straight young men see that it doesn’t matter who you are, as long as you are yourself.

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