It Gets Better, Even in the Middle East

Despite the reputation of contempt for LGBT people in the region, five Middle Eastern men have created videos for the It Gets Better Project, explaining their situations and the hardships they have overcome.

Both Altay Sedat Otun and Adam Bohemond, two of the men who created videos compiled by LGBT Asylum News, shared different experiences with their coming-out stories.

Altay Sedat Otun is a gay Muslim who tells his story of growing up in the Deep South and the difficulties he overcame when he realized he was gay. His mother, living in Georgia at the time, was initially very opposed to the idea of her son being gay. After finding pamphlets on "Coming out to Your Parents," she called to and asked, "Altay, are you gay?" Altay said, "Yeah, I am." And she said, "Don't come home," and hung up the phone.

Adam Bohemond comes from a Lebanese family who do not understand the American culture or hold liberal beliefs. But he explains in his video that it gets better, because they love you, they can't get rid of you, and they won't get rid of you.