Anti-gay bullying and the recent gay youth suicides have been making headlines lately. It’s tragic that these things are even issues in the 21st century, but I’m glad the media are drawing attention to them.

I want to share with you a few stories related to anti-gay bullying and gay youth suicides. The first is a video of Fort Worth City Councilman Joel Burns. Fighting back tears, he shared his personal story as a gay man and assured gay teens that “it gets better.” Please watch. His message is an important one.

The same day that Councilman Burns spoke, the LDS Church, in response to a Human Rights Campaign petition, released a statement condemning anti-gay bullying. Here part of it:

This past week we have all witnessed tragic deaths across the country as a result of bullying or intimidation of gay young men.  We join our voice with others in unreserved condemnation of acts of cruelty or attempts to belittle or mock any group or individual that is different—whether those differences arise from race, religion, mental challenges, social status, sexual orientation or for any other reason.  Such actions simply have no place in our society.

This Church has felt the bitter sting of persecution and marginalization early in our history, when we were too few in numbers to adequately protect ourselves and when society’s leaders often seemed disinclined to help.  Our parents, young adults, teens and children should therefore, of all people, be especially sensitive to the vulnerable in society and be willing to speak out against bullying or intimidation whenever it occurs, including unkindness toward those who are attracted to others of the same sex. This is particularly so in our own Latter-day Saint congregations. Each Latter-day Saint family and individual should carefully consider whether their attitudes and actions toward others properly reflect Jesus Christ’s second great commandment—to love one another.

The last story I want to share involves Glenn Beck. And in this story, Beck is the good guy. He spoke about the horrifying anti-gay hate crime that occurred in the Bronx earlier this month, the details of which are too painful for me to write.

Beck condemned the attack as representing “a whole new level of evil.” He also said the attack “is not only anti-gay, it is anti-human. It is bigotry for sport.”