A video of a Brazillian man's family welcoming him home after top surgery has gone viral for the most heartwarming reasons.
The video, with over 3 million views on Twitter and 12k Facebook shares, shows Richard Alcântara meeting his family post-surgery with his bandages still on. He walks up to a line of the men in his family with the backs turned and his he gets closer, they turn around, revealing they all have bandages taped on their chests similar to Richard's in solidarity.
Alcântara's girlfriend, Yuri Almeida, originally shared the video on Facebook according to Brazillian source Ovigilantes. "A year ago he suffered from the acceptance phase and feared the rejection of the family, already tried against his own life because of depression," reads the Portuguese-to-English Facebook translation of the caption. "But what he didn't know is that everything has its time, nothing happens by chance. For those who think that for these people lack God, they are wrong, they have more God in the heart [unclear] people. They don't require people to accept them, but require and deserve respect. We are what we are of colors, religions, opinions, and tastes. Different but not so we are better the lower. This is a demonstration of unconditional love of a family, with so much diversity always put love and union above all, where happiness. Where the conquest and realization of a dream of a member of the family is shared and lived by all, And it's the family I'm grateful to be part of. Prejudice has no space where love and respect are present!"
While São Paulo, Brazil hosts the biggest Pride parade in the world, LGBTQ people in the country still face many social challenges. Alcântara expressed gratitude for his family members that surprised him, saying it was "The most beautiful moment of my life."
