Remembering

Seven years ago in Orlando, Florida, a 29-year-old man, killed 49 people and wounded 53 more in a mass shooting at Pulse, a gay nightclub which as hosting a Latin Night.  It was not the first incident of violence against the LGBTQ+ community and sadly, not the last, but it was the deadliest.

The history of assaults on transgender people, lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals, is extensive.  We all know about the Stonewall Inn, the arson at the Upstairs Lounge in New Orleans, and the murder of Harvey Milk, but the list of other incidents goes on and on.

The names include Terry Knudsen, Robert Allen Taylor, Steven Charles, Anthony Milano, Rebecca Wight, Gordon Church, Venus Xtravaganza, Matthew Shepard, James Zappalorti, Julio Rivera, Allen Schindler, Brandon Teena, Nicholas West, Scott Amedure, Chanelle Pickett, Roxanne Ellis, Michelle Abdill, Fred Mangione, and so many others.  Some of the names are unknown.  Some of the incidents are unknown because there were not classified at the time as hate crimes.

A mass shooting at a gay bar in Colorado Springs last November left five people dead and twentyfive more injured.  The violence has not stopped, and the increase of anti-LGBTQ legislation has only made things worse.

I wish the violence would end.  I wish the hate would end.  We must fight for an end to all anti-LGBTQ+ violence.  I wish that Pride Month could be thirty days of celebrating, but we must remember our history and we must continue working for all the justice and rights that we (and all people) deserve.  On this day, please take a moment to remember that attack at Pulse and the loss of lives there, and

                                                     One more time please, say their names -

Stanley Almodovar III, 23

Amanda Alvear, 25

Oscar A. Aracena-Montero, 26

Rodolfo Ayala-Ayala, 33

Alejandro Barrios Martinez, 21

Martin Benitez Torres, 33

Antonio D. Brown, 30

Darryl R. Burt II, 29

Jonathan A. Camuy Vega, 24

Angel L. Candelario-Padro, 28

Simon A. Carrillo Fernandez, 31

Juan Chevez-Martinez, 25

Luis D. Conde, 39

Cory J. Connell, 21

Tevin E. Crosby, 25

Franky J. Dejesus Velazquez, 50

Deonka D. Drayton, 32

Mercedez M. Flores, 26

Peter O. Gonzalez-Cruz, 22

Juan R. Guerrero, 22

Paul T. Henry, 41

Frank Hernandez, 27

Miguel A. Honorato, 30

Javier Jorge-Reyes, 40

Jason B. Josaphat, 19

Eddie J. Justice, 30

Anthony L. Laureano Disla, 25

Christopher A. Leinonen, 32

Brenda L. Marquez McCool, 49

Jean C. Mendez Perez, 35

Akyra Monet Murray, 18

Kimberly Morris, 37

Jean C. Nieves Rodriguez, 27

Luis O. Ocasio-Capo, 20

Geraldo A. Ortiz-Jimenez, 25

Eric Ivan Ortiz-Rivera, 36

Joel Rayon Paniagua, 32

Enrique L. Rios Jr., 25

Juan P. Rivera Velazquez, 37

Yilmary Rodriguez Solivan, 24

Christopher J. Sanfeliz, 24

Xavier Emmanuel Serrano Rosado, 35

Gilberto Ramon Silva Menendez, 25

Edward Sotomayor Jr., 34

Shane E. Tomlinson, 33

Leroy Valentin Fernandez, 25

Luis S. Vielma, 22

Luis Daniel Wilson-Leon, 37

Jerald A. Wright, 31

 May they, and every single victim of LGBTQ violence and hate, rest in peace.