These leaders are standing up to anti-LGBT bullying

“Being a teenager and figuring out who you are is hard enough without someone attacking you,” said Ellen DeGeneres back in 2010. She was responding to what she described as a bullying “epidemic” across the US that was causing young people from the LGBT community to take their own lives.

While LGBT youth face exactly the same struggles as other young people – exam worries, dating woes – they also have to contend with a whole host of extra issues. As a result of those pressures, they are more likely to skip school, to experiment with drugs and alcohol, to end up homeless, to be depressed and to think about or attempt to commit suicide.

The same year Ellen DeGeneres spoke out, the first Spirit Day was celebrated on 15 October – a day where people in schools, universities and places of work wear purple to stand against bullying and show their support for LGBT youth.

These four leaders from the political, business and entertainment world have also spoken out in support for the campaign.

Barack Obama, US President

“We’ve got to dispel the myth that bullying is just a rite of passage, that it’s some inevitable part of growing up. It’s not.

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 like you don’t belong. It’s tough.

When you’re teased or bullied, it can seem like you’ve brought it on yourself for being different or for not fitting in with everybody else. But 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 who love you, and care about you, just the way you are.

With time you will see that your differences are a source of pride.”

Neil Patrick Harris, Actor and Television Host

“When you’re young, when you’re in elementary school, in high school, it’s important to try and fit in, and be accepted, and to be part of the average.

But let me assure you, if you’re getting bullied, and you’re feeling on the outskirts: it gets better. When you get older, you find that people are actually drawn towards individuals with different points of view, who are proud of who they are and who make interesting and different, unique choices.

Act with strength, act with courage and act with class. Stand tall and be proud of who you are.”

Ellen Page, Actress

“There are pervasive stereotypes about masculinity and femininity that define how we’re all supposed to act, dress and speak, and they serve nobody. Anyone who defines these so-called norms becomes worthy of comment and scrutiny. And the LGBT community knows this all too well.

I suffered for years because I was scared to be out. My spirit suffered, my mental health suffered and my relationships suffered. And I’m standing here today, with all of you, on the other side of that pain.

What I’ve learned is that love – the beauty of it, the joy of it, and even the pain of it – is the most incredible gift to give and receive as a human being. And we deserve to experience love fully, equally, without shame and without compromise.”

Tim Cook, CEO of Apple

“Throughout my professional life, I’ve tried to maintain a basic level of privacy. I come from humble roots, and I don’t seek to draw attention to myself.

While I have never denied my sexuality, I haven’t publicly acknowledged it either, until now. So let me be clear: I’m proud to be gay, and I consider being gay among the greatest gifts God has given me.

I don’t consider myself an activist, but I realize how much I’ve benefited from the sacrifice of others. So if hearing that the CEO of Apple is gay can help someone struggling to come to terms with who he or she is, or bring comfort to anyone who feels alone, or inspire people to insist on their equality, then it’s worth the trade-off with my own privacy.”

Read his letter in full here.

Author: Stéphanie Thomson is an Editor at the World Economic Forum

Image: The sidewalks are filled with the rainbow flag as revelers celebrate Gay Pride by marching at the annual parade in New York June 24, 2007. REUTERS/Chip East