Barack Obama supports gay teenagers in video

The US President Barack Obama has released a video in which he tells gay teenagers “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 that sometimes you don't belong."

The video is part of a campaign called It Gets Better Project, which was launched last month by writer and activist Dan Savage after a spate of gay American teenagers committed suicide.

Drawing upon his own experiences President Obama goes on to say: "It's tough […] When you're teased or bullied it can seem like somehow you brought it on yourself for being different [… ] But I want to say to you that you are not alone and you didn’t do anything wrong. […] With time you're going to see that your differences are a source of pride, a source of strength."

President Obama isn’t the only high-profile US politician to lend his support to the campaign; on Tuesday Secretary of State Hillary Clinton posted her own two-minute video online.

Obama’s video was posted on the White House website and linked to the It Gets Better Project. Its founder Dan Savage founded the project after reading about 15-year-olds Justin Aaberg, of Minnesota, and Billy Lucas, of Indiana, who killed themselves. His initial reaction, which he wrote about in his blog, was to wish he had been able to talk to the boys to help them realise that they were not alone but getting access to schools to address children about sexuality and bullying proved too difficult. Instead Savage set up a website where people could share their experiences and on 21 September Savage and his partner Terry posted the  the first It Gets Better Project video, an eight-minute segment in which the two revisit the bullying they were subjected to at school.

By the end of that week, 200 videos had been posted from around the world and their YouTube channel now have more than 1.7m views. The videos feature diverse figures from politicians and pop stars to celebrities, via bloggers, comedians, and everyday people.

One of the most viewed is a 12-minute speech by Joel Burns, a council member in Fort Worth, Texas, who tells a council meeting about the recent suicides, his own experiences as a young homosexual and the lack of support and intervention in schools.

"One day, when I was in the ninth grade I was cornered by some older kids who roughed me up," Burns said. "They said that I was a faggot, and that I should die and go to hell where I belonged."

The president's video was welcomed by campaigners on the issue. Charles Robbins, executive director of the Trevor Project, a 24-hour helpline for gay youths at risk, said: "I'm pleased that the president has spoken directly to youths, letting them know that they are not alone, that they didn't do anything wrong and don't deserve to be bullied. These are powerful words coming from the leader of the free world."

The release of the two videos comes at a sensitive time for the Obama administration as it challenges a California judge's decision to put a halt to the US military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy regarding gay servicemen and women. A government appeal of that decision was granted by a court this week, and the policy effectively remains in place.