Kidlit World Says: “It Gets Better”
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The video is only four minutes and 52 seconds long, but the impression it leaves is lasting. Coe Booth, E. Lockhart, James Howe, Laurie Halse Anderson, and 31 other big names in children’s publishing have joined forces to create “It Gets Better: Authors and Illustrators Unite” as part of a global campaign to help lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT), and bullied kids see that “love and happiness can be a reality in their future.” Children’s author Phil Bildner was prompted to create the video after basketball star Kobe Bryant’s anti-gay rant toward a referee in April 2011. “It was time for me to walk my talk,” says Bildner, author of the “Slugger” (S & S) series, who reached out to his colleagues for help. “This is one of the best uses of the power of the Internet I’ve ever seen,” says Bruce Colville, one of the authors who participated in the video.
