Born This Way Foundation
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| Founded | 2011 |
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| Founders |
Lady Gaga Cynthia Germanotta |
| Slogan | Empowering Youth Inspiring Bravery |
| Mission | To foster a more accepting society, where differences are embraced and individuality is celebrated. The Foundation is dedicated to creating a safe community that helps connect young people with the skills and opportunities they need to build a kinder, braver world. |
| Website | bornthiswayfoundation |
The Born This Way Foundation (BTWF) is an American non-profit organization founded in 2011 by singer Lady Gaga and her mother Cynthia Germanotta. Established at Harvard University, and named after Gaga's second studio album Born This Way (2011), the foundation aims to inspire youth and build better communities. BTWF works in partnership with the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and the California Endowment.
The foundation aims to create a "braver, kinder world" for youths; create safe-spaces, promote the learning of life skills, and provide opportunities to improve their local communities. In a statement, Lady Gaga said "My mother and I have initiated a passion project [...] to establish a standard of bravery and kindness, as well as a community worldwide that protects and nurtures others in the face of bullying and abandonment."
In September 2012 Gaga was awarded the LennonOno Grant For Peace from Yoko Ono for her work with the foundation "actively campaigning on pro-tolerance and peace issues." The award "intends to keep that pop activism alive" in the spirit of Ono and her late husband John Lennon whose song "Imagine" includes the famous line "imagine all the people living life in peace."
Lady Gaga has a long history of action against bullying and empowerment of young people. In 2011, Gaga met with U.S. President Barack Obama to talk on the subject. Her meeting was in part response to gay fourteen-year-old Jamey Rodemeyer, who killed himself because he was being bullied. He had recorded an "It Gets Better" video and before he died posted a line from a Lady Gaga song on his Facebook page. In 2010, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network stated, "There has been heightened media attention surrounding the [recent] suicides." The same month, Tyler Clementi died, four other LGBT teenagers were reported to have committed suicide after being bullied about their homosexuality.
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