Celebs, Members of Congress Sign Petition

Pop singer Demi Lovato, New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, and 20 members of Congress have joined Ellen DeGeneres in signing Katy Butler's petition to change the rating of the documentary Bully.

Butler, a Michigan high school student who identifies as lesbian and who launched a Change.org petition to change the R rating of the antibullying documentary to a more accessible PG-13 rating, personally delivered 200,000 signatures to the Motion Picture Association of America on March 7.

Rep. Mike Honda (D-Calif.) has issued a bipartisan letter to the MPAA, signed by 20 additional members of Congress, supporting Butler’s petition.

“We are writing to express our sincere disappointment in the MPAA’s decision to issue an R rating for the soon-to-be-released documentary Bully,” the letter reads. “This important project shows the real life anguish of many teenagers in this country who are tormented, harassed, and bullied by their peers. This truth should be shared with as wide an audience as is appropriate and possible. We believe an R-rating excludes the very audience for whom this film is desperately important.”

Last week DeGeneres encouraged viewers of her daytime talk show to sign the petition and introduced Butler from the studio audience. Singer-actress Lovato also urged her more than 5 million Twitter followers to sign Butler's petition. You can sign the petition here.