By Cara Alwill
For almost ten years, volunteers around the country have worked tirelessly to support an organization called The Trevor Project. This nonprofit organization offers 24/7 round the clock support for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning youths. The group's prevention hotline and trained counselors have helped save many lives of at-risk youth contemplating suicide, as well as fostering safe, inclusive environments at their homes and schools, and now "Harry Potter" star Daniel Radcliffe is joining the cause.
Radcliffe, who recently stopped by the MTV studios, told us, "It's something I've always been quite passionate about. Because I grew up around gay men, it was always a natural thing to me. It was never something I ever gave a second thought to."
He admits growing up, he didn’t understand how some people could be so ignorant. "Some are gay, some are straight — didn't make any difference to me. When I went to my second school, I heard terms like 'puff' and 'homo' getting thrown around. It never occurred to me that some people might have a problem with it."
"The Trevor Project is the only nationwide around-the-clock crisis- and suicide-prevention help line [of its kind]," Radcliffe said of the cause. "[It's designed] for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and questioning youth. There will also soon be a 'Trevor' iPhone application."
Though many stars in Hollywood support causes that they can relate to on a personal level, Radcliffe doesn’t feel that is a necessity. When asked why he chose to support The Trevor Project, his response is: You don't have to be gay to be a supporter — you just have to be human.
** Hollywood Crush Twitter