President Barack Obama joins 'It Gets Better' project with video supporting bullied gay teens

All hail the Chief, proud defender of gay teens. Yes, President Barack Obama has jumped on the anti-gay-bullying bandwagon by producing a heartfelt “It Gets Better” video, following in the footsteps of bold-faced names from Chaz Salvatore Bono and Ke$ha to Adam Lambert and Neil Patrick Harris. The Commander in Chief is far from the first politician to encourage targeted teens to seek solace in adults and know that things will improve — just this week, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton did her own version under the banner of “Tomorrow Will Be Better,” and of course, there’s the viral video of Fort Worth city council member Joel Burns giving his impassioned “It Gets Better” speech during a city council meeting.

Sitting in front of a presidential-looking background, Obama gets right to the point of his appearance: “We’ve got to dispel this myth that bullying is just a normal right of passage, that it’s some inevitable part of growing up. It’s not,” he iterates. “We have an obligation to ensure that our schools are safe for all of our kids.” He continues later: “What I want to say is this: You are not alone. You didn’t do anything wrong. You didn’t do anything to deserve being bullied.” Say what you will about Obama’s stances on the many civil rights issues for gays, the point of this video is to try to encourage young gays to stay alive. Even if it saves one teenager, that’s crucial and worthy. Watch President Obama’s plea here:

Are you surprised President Obama joined the “It Gets Better” fight? Does this inspire you? Do you think it’ll make a difference in the fight against the bullying of gay teens?

Tanner on Twitter: @EWTanStransky