WATCH NYPD Tells LGBT Youth It Gets Better

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Police were once considered enemies of LGBT people; indeed, the event generally considered to have spurred the modern gay rights movement was a police raid on a gay bar, New York City's Stonewall Inn.

Now, in an indicator of how times have changed, the New York Police Department has recorded a video for the It Gets Better Project, the series that seeks to help LGBT teens get through tough times by reminding them that life will improve.

"There was a time that I wanted to disappear, it was that painful, so I understand what it feels like," says Det. Carl Locke, president of the Gay Officers Action League, in the video. "But it does get better."

Police commissioner Ray Kelly reminds gay youth that they can turn to the police for help if they're being bullied. "No one should have to suffer for being who they are," he says.

Watch the video below.

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Trudy Ring

Trudy Ring is The Advocate’s senior politics editor and copy chief. She has been a reporter and editor for daily newspapers and LGBTQ+ weeklies/monthlies, trade magazines, and reference books. She is a political junkie who thinks even the wonkiest details are fascinating, and she always loves to see political candidates who are groundbreaking in some way. She enjoys writing about other topics as well, including religion (she’s interested in what people believe and why), literature, theater, and film. Trudy is a proud “old movie weirdo” and loves the Hollywood films of the 1930s and ’40s above all others. Other interests include classic rock music (Bruce Springsteen rules!) and history. Oh, and she was a Jeopardy! contestant back in 1998 and won two games. Not up there with Amy Schneider, but Trudy still takes pride in this achievement.

Trudy Ring is The Advocate’s senior politics editor and copy chief. She has been a reporter and editor for daily newspapers and LGBTQ+ weeklies/monthlies, trade magazines, and reference books. She is a political junkie who thinks even the wonkiest details are fascinating, and she always loves to see political candidates who are groundbreaking in some way. She enjoys writing about other topics as well, including religion (she’s interested in what people believe and why), literature, theater, and film. Trudy is a proud “old movie weirdo” and loves the Hollywood films of the 1930s and ’40s above all others. Other interests include classic rock music (Bruce Springsteen rules!) and history. Oh, and she was a Jeopardy! contestant back in 1998 and won two games. Not up there with Amy Schneider, but Trudy still takes pride in this achievement.