256: Preview: 'It Gets Better' founder comes to UNC-CH

You've seen the commercials with Tim Gunn and Adam Lambert. 

The "It Gets Better" project has benefited thousands of people by raising awareness about LGBT teen bullying as well as by raising money for LGBT charities across the nation. 

Next Thursday, the UNC community will host Dan Savage, the project’s founder himself, at 6:30 p.m. in Memorial Hall. The event is free to students and $5 for non-students.

Before creating the "It Gets Better" project, Savage was writing a popular sex column entitled "Savage Love" for The Stranger, Seattle's weekly independent newspaper, a column which he still publishes today. In his column, Savage responds to reader-generated queries about sex and relationships without skimping on the details.

After receiving disheartening stories from many of his column’s readers about LGBT bullying, Savage decided to co-found ItGetsBetter.org in 2010 with his husband, Terry Miller. The site's goal is to prevent suicide and depression in LGBT teens, and according to the site, to "remind teenagers in the LGBT community that they are not alone." 

More than 500,000 people have signed It Gets Better’s pledge to end discrimination and bullying against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender teenagers. Those who sign the pledge agree to stand against intolerance in schools and in the workforce. Anyone can sign the petition online – all you need to provide is a first and last name, email address and ZIP code.

Though the project is still relatively young, It Gets Better has already helped raise more than $100,000 for various LGBT charities. The project has received support from people from President Obama to Anne Hathaway, as well as the staff of business giants like Facebook and Google.

But because of the explicit nature of Savage's column, many students have expressed disapproval of the Carolina Union Activities Board's decision to host Savage on campus.

A string of letters to the editor flooded the Daily Tar Heel’s inbox after they broke the news that CUAB would be hosting Savage on UNC’s campus.

Sophomore Brendan Madigan inspired many other students to weigh in on the issue by submitting an editorial letter calling Savage’s column “filthy” and writing that Savage’s use of “defamatory language” should not be promoted at UNC.

Others like sophomore Dylan Crouch argued that Savage has made “bigoted comments” about the African-American community in his column, making him inappropriate to speak at UNC, which boasts of having a diverse student body.

Many students, though, responded to Madigan’s letter with support for Savage and the ideals his work promotes, even if the methods in which he goes about them are a bit unorthodox.

Grace Peter, chair of CUAB's culture committee, said that she knew Savage would receive a mixed response from students -- and that was a good thing.

"In order for an event to be successful," Peter said, "it should charge some kind of discourse." 

Peter hopes that students who disagree with Savage's perspective will still choose to attend the event because in her opinion, it's important to hear viewpoints other than your own while in college.

"Although Dan is in no way PG, we decided that what he has to say will bring much more value to our campus than not," Peter said. 

Though Madigan’s letter called for CUAB to “cancel the event,” Savage’s lecture will be hosted as originally planned.

Savage's presentation at UNC will be similar to his column, and audience members will have the chance to ask anything about love, sex and everything in between.

Tickets to Savage's talk are free to students, thanks to the student fees each semester. All other tickets are $5. Student and non-student tickets are both available now at the Memorial Hall box office or by calling 919.843.3333.