"That's So Last Century"

You know, it was hard when I was in school.

The gay kid.

If I chose to speak I could hear people muttering 'faggot' from somewhere in the room. I heard 'queer' in the hallways and 'fag' in the lockerroom. It seemed as though there wasn't a safe place to be in those days.

And I'd thought it had changed. i thought as the world grew up we'd hear less and less of 'faggot' and 'homo' and 'queer' and 'dyke' but we don't. Kids today still have a hard time in schools because, many times, it isn't just the words thrown at them, it's fists.

Sticks and stones.

At ThinkB4YouSpeak.com, the folks who brought us the "That's So Gay" commercials, they have a new ad campaign. There aim is to protect lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender teens in school, keeping them safe from homophobic remarks and harassment.

"That's so gay" is the most common phrase heard in schools today. It disrespects the LGBT community because it's another way of saying "That's so....stupid....ugly....dumb."

The Think B4 You Speak campaign aims to raise awareness about the prevalence and consequences of anti-LGBT bias and behavior in schools. Ultimately, the goal is to reduce and prevent the use of homophobic language in an effort to create a more positive environment for LGBT teens. The campaign also aims to reach adults, including school personnel and parents; their support of this message is crucial to the success of efforts to change behavior.

So, think before you speak.