For those who missed it, last week’s controversial mid-season finale episode of “Glee” may have shocked fans, but one LGBT youth advocacy group has seen a number of benefits as a result.
As Entertainment Weekly is reporting, The Trevor Project saw their web traffic spike and their phone calls triple after the episode, which depicted former bully Dave Karofsky (beautifully played by Max Adler) attempting suicide — to the tune of Young the Giant’s “Cough Syrup” — after being outed as gay to his classmates.
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“What was great about the show is that they worked in conjunction with us so we knew in advance that there was going to in all likelihood be an increase in volume,” Trevor Project co-founder Peggy Rajski tells EW. “What happened was the volume went up about 300 percent, but we were ready.”
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The Trevor Project is ready to help LGBTQ youth who feel they may be in crisis. If you feel you need help, please reach out 1-866-488-7386.
In high school, I weighed a lot of what raced through Dave Karofsky’s mind in this episode. All those moments compacted in the quick video above that led to his suicide attempt happened to me at some point. But lucky for me, I kept moving forward.
The phrase “it gets better” has, thankfully, entered our daily lexicon. But it’s not a cliche, it’s the truth. I want to encourage everyone to think about the power of our words, because you never know when you may be teasing the next Dave Karofsky.
Forward.
‘Glee’ episode movingly highlights LGBT youth bullying and suicide