The parents of a 12-year-old boy who committed suicide after relentless anti-gay bullying have spoken out.
Eli Fritchley was a seventh-grade student at Cascades Middle school in Shelbyville, Tennessee. As well as being ruthlessly taunted over his clothes and mannerisms, he was also told by classmates he would go to hell for being gay.
On November 28, the bullying became too much to bear and Eli sadly took his own life.
For the first time since the tragic event, his parents Debbey and Steve Fritchley have spoken out about their loss, describing their son as a gentle soul who never hid his true self.
A trombone player in the school band, Eli liked to paint his nails and wore the same Spongebob sweater almost every day. He also enjoyed doing his own laundry and his favorite color was pink.
Reflecting on what drove classmates to bully her son, Debbey told a local news station: "I think probably because he was in the same clothes every single day they used that as a weapon."
She went on to explain that she had previously believed her son didn't care what the other kids thought of him.
"He didn't care, or at least we thought he didn't care, and that's what's really difficult for us because we thought he didn't care."
The grieving mother also recalled how bullies would taunt her son.
"He was told because he didn’t necessarily have a religion and that he said he was gay that he was going to go to Hell. They told him that quite often."
His father Steve then told the news station how, although they were aware of the bullying, they were not aware of the extent of it.
"It was really abusive. I don’t think it was ever physical. I think it was just words, but words hurt. They really hurt," he said through tears.
There has been an outpouring of sympathy and grief on social media for Eli and his parents.
"My heart is broken tonight. Eli Fritchley, I am so so sorry," tweeted one user.
"Using your religion as an excuse to hate or threaten someone who may not follow your religion is NEVER OK," another wrote.
Others drew attention to the GoFundMe set up by Eli's parents, which will "create an anti-bullying campaign in his honor."
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