Gay Youth Commits Suicide One Month After Posting 'It Gets Better' Video

Only one month after filming an "It Gets Better" video to help inspire young gays and lesbians, 19-year-old Eric James Borges tragically committed suicide. The circumstances surrounding the young filmmaker's death have not been revealed, although his work showcases that his "coming out" in the last year was extremely difficult.

In his video, Borges discussed intimate details about his life, including an exorcism his mother apparently performed to "cure" him of his homosexuality. He was later told to leave home.

"My anxiety, depression, self-loathing and suicidal thoughts spiked," he explained. "I had nowhere safe to go, either at home or school... My parents told me that, among other things, I was disgusting, perverted, unnatural and damned to Hell."

Additionally, he spoke of the abuse he received from peers at school on a daily basis as a result of his perceived homosexuality. He said his situation worsened as he progressed throughout junior and senior high school.

"I was raised in an extremist Christian household," he said. "My earliest recollections of my experience with the relentless and ongoing bullying was in kindergarten, but of course to a lesser degree."

In a tragic unfolding of events, at the time of his death, Borges was trying to re-boot his life in San Joaquin Valley, California. The young man was working as an intern at The Trevor Project, an organization that works to prevent suicide among LGBT young people.

A description on the "It Gets Better" video he posted reads:

"It Gets Better Campaign" by EricJames Borges from Visalia, CA. My story is always hard to tell, even in a simplistic condensed form, but, "Many LGBT youth can't picture what their lives might be like as openly gay adults. They can't imagine a future for themselves. So let's show them what our lives are like, let's show them what the future may hold in store for them." -ItGetsBetter.org

Watch the video, below:

Here's a short film Borges posted to YouTube back in November as well:

(H/T: Daily Mail)