Can it be said enough?

I don't think so. I've written about this before, and in the wake of recent tragedies, I'm revisiting it.

From how the media is portraying recent events, one would think that we're in the middle of a wave of suicides by LGBT teens and young adults. I have a feeling that this isn't the case, but rather that social media is finally shining a spotlight on something that has been going on for centuries (if not millenia), but was always swept under the rug or politely overlooked. Bullying is real. Teen suicide is real. And the sad fact is that for far longer than I've been alive, bullying of LGBT and any kids deemed as "different" has been given a bit of a pass. It's ok, because what they feel and what they do and who they want to love is "wrong" to many people.

No, it isn't. God is love, right? So how can love for anyone be anything other than godly? We're taught "judge not, lest ye be judged", but apparently that isn't true for LGBT people. I guess I missed Jesus giving us that little caveat. And hello: Jesus chose to hang out with lepers and prostitutes - WHO would be their social equivalent in this day and age? People really think Jesus would have a problem with the LGBT community?

And on a slightly divergent note, I love the "It Gets Better" campaign. And I love that we live in a world of what many people consider "over sharing". Because 20 - 30 years ago, people didn't discuss these things. It wasn't "seemly". And people suffered in silence, not knowing that there were MILLIONS of other people going through what they were, some right down the street. As much as our voyeuristic culture often disgusts me, I can't help but be grateful for the fact that the idea of "normal" has been blasted to smithereens, and that people can share their most horrific experiences and find others like them who can help them cope, grieve, and heal.

It's a slow process. And it's far from easy or pretty. But I'd honestly rather live in a nation filled with Snookis than Betty Drapers.