Different Like You features SHS students

Young or old, gay or straight, white or black, it makes no difference– everyone has dealt with bullying at some point in his/her life.  Different Like You (DLY), an interactive online community, features a video library that allows users to share their personal stories.

The unique idea was spurred on by the efforts of Justin Bachman (the founder of DLY) as well as a far-reaching community of members. The site promotes a sense of unity for all those that feel, well, different.

Lisa Bachman, Executive Director of Different Like You and mother of Justin Bachman, is on a mission to help make the site as powerful and life-changing as it can possibly be. DLY started with  humble beginnings but eventually grew into the current Different Like You website.

“After holding eight Tolerance Fairs (annual events celebrating intolerance and attracting thousands), we took a hard look at our goals,” Bachman said.  “In wanting to educate people to overcome ignorance, promote acceptance and put ‘living loud’ into action, we transitioned to a newly named organization with an enhanced mission to take our past activities to the next level.  We expanded in a way that people all over the country can access empowering messages, build self-esteem, and find the resources they need.”

The Tolerance Fairs were extremely successful, gathering more and more coverage to the event each and every year. Eventually, the fairs began summoning so many people that three of the eight events were held outside of the state. Now, with the use of technology, the movement can expand even further.

“Our new website, DifferentLikeYou.org is a growing library of 30 second video stories created to inform, comfort, and inspire,” Bachman said. “The videos are paired via an online tagging system with resource organizations available to help, educate, or provide volunteer opportunities. The ultimate goal is to educate to overcome ignorance, provide a sense of belonging and allow users to discover immediate self-confidence and personal acceptance. We harness technology and storytelling to become a powerful resource for those in need.”

Emma Cohen, Solon High School senior and member of Different Like You’s Executive Teen Board, first discovered the group via an internship opportunity on their website. After passing through interview rounds, she was extended a position on the board and has done her part in furthering the organization.

“I have been as active as I possibly can be, with making videos for our website, attending as many community events as I can representing DLY, and helping with fundraising efforts,” Cohen said. “I met so many amazing people, and I found that, just like the name Different Like You, on and off of the board, …I had things in common with so many people but every person had an interesting and different story to tell.”

As expressed by Bachman and Cohen, DLY is changing lives for the better with its strong message to those needing self-confidence and personal acceptance. But Cohen believes it to be something so much more than that; in fact, helping people find their true potential and purpose is what drives her and the organization.

“DLY’s goal is to have all people recognize and celebrate what makes them different, and our goal off of that is to spread the word about what we do,” Cohen said. “I think it’s a really important goal of theirs, because as I’ve seen since I starting working with DLY, …if you asked anybody what they think makes them special, they say something along the lines of ‘I don’t know’ or ‘there’s nothing special about me,’ which isn’t true. A motto that we use is ‘Our differences are our superpowers.’ DLY has definitely helped me see every person’s superpower, what makes them different and special, and I think that if people can recognize what makes them amazing, they could be happier, more confident, and proud of what they can do.”

SHS senior Sarah Hong, another Teen Board Member of DLY, joined for reasons similar to Cohen and has advocated for its growth. With such a broad message to share, the site needs exposure more than anything.

“There’s plenty of ways of getting involved,” Hong said. “The best and easiest way is to simply visit DLY’s website. A huge part of DLY is its online video library, where people from all over the world post 30 second stories about themselves and how they are different. Don’t be hesitant to post a video story about yourself.”

The battle to overcome ignorance won’t be finished in a month, a year, or even a lifetime, but Different Like You is making strides and is doing its absolute best to overcome such a monumental challenge.

“It’s so easily overlooked these days that not everyone has the same personality,” Hong said. “Not everyone thinks or acts the same way. But just because someone is different, that doesn’t make them a bad person. My personal goal with DLY is to not only help spread their outreach but to also live my life as a more understanding and aware person.”