TUTU SUPPORTS ‘IT GETS BETTER’ CAPE TOWN

A group of University of Cape Town (UCT) students and staff have teamed up with civil society groups and high profile individuals, including Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, to create ‘It Gets Better – Cape Town’.

The project consists of a collection of 18 videos that share messages of hope and solidarity for sexual minorities.

The It Gets Better Project is a global video campaign targeting sexual minorities who experience discrimination in secondary schools and beyond.

In his video, Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu states that “if you experience discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation, I want you to know that It Gets Better. There are people and organisations throughout this wonderful land that will support you. We should support one another as an act of true Ubuntu.”

Charlie Keegan, an actor in the acclaimed South African film Skoonheid, an Official Selection at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival, reminds young people that “the greatest people who ever lived were people who had to fight their way through times of pain and suffering and a feeling hopelessness. What made those people great was their ability to overcome obstacles that brought the most pain and the most fear.”

Nokubonga Yawa, the Head of the Grade 9 Khayelitsha Youth Group at Equal Education, tells young people that “we have the Constitution protecting us… We have a right to sexuality and no one has a right to discriminate.”

Nick Fenton-Wells, the UCT Rugby Team Captain, states that “we look to encourage sexual minorities who’d like to play rugby to approach the UCT Rugby Club. They are more than welcome.”

The It Gets Better – Cape Town videos can be found on YouTube at www.youtube.com/itgetsbettercapetown. Any individual or organisation can view or screen the collection free of charge.

Part of the collection will be screened at the Out in Africa South African Gay and Lesbian Film Festival later this month.

The collection was conceptualised by director and producer, Andrew Barry, a Master of Philosophy in Education student at UCT.

“I want sexual minorities who experience discrimination to know that there are individuals and organisations in Cape Town that will support them” said Barry, adding, “I hope It Gets Better – Cape Town will motivate other individuals and organisations in Cape Town and the rest South Africa to create similar videos.”

Around the world, a wide range of high profile individuals and organisations have created It Gets Better videos including President Barack Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Prime Minister David Cameron, Anne Hathaway, Adam Lambert, Ke$ha, Facebook, and Google.

Watch Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu’s It Gets Better video below. Go to www.youtube.com/itgetsbettercapetown to see more clips.