A 12-year-old boy in Atlanta is in protective custody after a live Instagram stream showed relatives shaving the word “gay” in their hair.

The boy, who is allegedly called Tyler, is beaten and verbally abused by several adults, allegedly from his own family. According to MetroWeekly, a second video posted on the same account showed the boy was asked to say that he was not molested in the previous video and that his family was good and was just trying to help him. Police determined the location of the house and put Tyler in protective custody pending an investigation.

“Now we’re going to show them that you got your ass hit,” warns the woman who appears to be recording, Tyler.

The disturbing video, which the Atlanta police described as “difficult to watch” and “totally unacceptable”, showed the adults beating, pushing, and hurling anti-gay slurs at the young defenseless boy.

“You say you are what?” asked a man in an obvious reference to Tyler’s sexuality.

“Nothing,” Tyler replied meekly.

“And he likes that shit,” a woman can be heard in the background.

“You still do gay shit,” the man continued. “You think that on the side of your head for no reason?”

The group continues to hit, push, and insult Tyler.

In a second video, MetroWeekly reported that Tyler was defending his family after a voice in the background told him to “say it.”

“She and my brother didn’t abuse me,” Tyler said in the second video. “You just showed me that you had to stop doing it.”

The public was quickly outraged.

“In the black community, we so often don’t get the tools we need to identify or understand [gender or sexuality]“Terence Stewart, president of the Atlanta Black Pride LGBTQ + group, told the Daily Dot. “This video leaves no doubt that this is not the first time this kid has been through this.”

Atlanta police said in a statement they were “recognized for the number of people who reported this case to us and for those who provided information about the whereabouts of Tyler and others on the video.”

“Investigators were able to locate the incident and identify the youth, and he was placed in the care of the Georgia Division of Family & Children Services (DFCS) on the evening of June 18, 2021,” Atlanta police said in the statement released Facebook. “At this point we are working closely with DFCS and the investigation is ongoing.”

Stewart said the abuse was terrible and most likely will continue, and Tyler will need love and support to help him overcome his family’s harsh words and deeds.

“But your rejection and constant degradation will destroy whatever self-esteem you have left,” said Stewart. “When you enter society, you enter as a broken person.”

While the news for Tyler was grim, the story contrasted with an Oklahoma father helping his son hang a Pride flag outside their home in a conservative Florida town. The video went viral and pointed the right way to support and nurture LGBTQ + youth.

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