Candlelight vigil in Charleston protests bullying

CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — A candlelight vigil is scheduled in Charleston to protest bullying of young people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender.

The Thursday night event is being called “It Gets Better, Charleston.” Organizers, including the campus Gay-Straight Alliance, say it will give students a forum to discuss the discrimination they face.

A survey two years ago by a group called the Lesbian and Straight Education Network found that nationwide an estimated 85 percent of high school students who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender are harassed because of their sexual orientation.

It also found that those students in schools with gay-straight alliances reported less harassment.