Gay Pride Celebrations Turn Somber After Orlando Nightclub Massacre
Parades in Los Angeles, Philadelphia took on added meaning
By Noreen O'Donnell ••
What should have been a celebratory time for gay, lesbian and transgender communities around the world became a time of mourning following the slaughter of at least 49 people at a gay nightclub in Orlando.
June is pride month, but parades on Sunday took on a somber tone after the attack on Pulse, where 29-year-old Omar Mateen opened fire in the early morning hours.
Los Angeles had a particular scare, when a heavily armed man with possible explosives was arrested before the pride parade in West Hollywood. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said there did not appear to be any link to the Orlando massacre but that the man said was heading for the parade.
Meanwhile, the parades in Los Angeles and Philadelphia began with moments of silence and police increased their presence. Marchers in Philadelphia said the killings gave them new resolve to live their lives openly, without fear.
"It's so sad, and you would think that we'd come further," Haden Reed, an assistant manager at an LGBT bookstore in Philadelphia, told NBC Philadelphia. "But this is just a reminder there's a really long way to go."
Barack Obama says the nightclub shooting in Orlando was an “act of terror” and an “act of hate.”
The rampage during pride month left people across the country stricken and Orlando's gay community in shock, said Bill Manes, an editor of the city’s LGBT newspaper, "Watermark."
"As far as I know, this was not an orchestrated effort," he said. "It's just something that happens when someone wants to be a really bad person."
The shooter's father, Seddique Mir Mateen, told NBC News on Sunday his son apparently was motivated by anger toward gay men rather than religion. He had recently gotten upset when he saw two men kissing in front of his wife and child, the father said.
"They were kissing each other and touching each other and he said, 'Look at that. In front of my son they are doing that,'" the father said. "And then we were in the men's bathroom and men were kissing each other."
President Barack Obama spoke about the deadly shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, calling Pulse more than a night club, but “a place of solidarity, empowerment, where people have come together, to raise awareness, to speak their minds, and to advocate for their civil rights.”
Sources told NBC News that Mateen, in a phone call to 911 in the moments before the rampage, swore allegiance to the leader of ISIS, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. ISIS has reportedly treated gay people brutally, releasing images that seem to show gay men being hurled off buildings and then stoned to death.
At the Stonewall Inn in New York City, a symbol of gay rights after a police raid led to riots in the late 1960s, flowers were left at its entrance before a Sunday evening vigil. The National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce in Orlando said it was heartbroken by the senseless attack.
"We mourn for those lost and in need of answers," it said in a statement.
"This only reaffirms and strengthens our commitment to fight for the inclusion and protection of the LGBT community nationwide and around the globe."
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Nicole Edwards and her wife Kellie Edwards observe a moment of silence during a vigil outside the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts for the mass shooting victims at the Pulse nightclub June 13, 2016, in Orlando, Florida.
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People hold candles during an evening memorial service for the victims of the Pulse Nightclub shootings, at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, June 13, 2016, in Orlando, Florida. The shooting at Pulse Nightclub, which killed 49 people and injured 53, is the worst mass-shooting event in American history.
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Demetrice Naulings cries while recalling how he survived the mass shooting at the Pulse nightclub that claimed the life of his friend Eddie Justice, June 14, 2016, in Orlando, Florida. "I'm not going to get a chance to get another friend like," said Naulings. "Eddie was my angel."
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Angel Colon, a victim of the Pulse nightclub shooting, is kissed by his sister while attending a news conference at the Orlando Regional Medical Center, June 14, 2016, in Orlando, Florida.
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Orlando, second from right, and his family attend a vigil and church service held at Joy Metropolitan Community Church near the Pulse nightclub. Orlando, who declined to give his last name, was at Pulse, trapped for three hours in a bathroom.
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David Rivera holds a rainbow flag at the site of a candlelight vigil for the victims of the Orlando, Florida, nightclub shooting, June 12, 2016, in Atlanta. The vigil was organized by members of the city's large LGBT community.
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A man attends a candlelight vigil for the victims of the Pulse Nightclub shooting in Orlando, Florida, at Newtown Neighbourhood Centre on June 13, 2016, in Sydney, Australia.
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Family members wait for word from police after arriving down the street from a shooting involving multiple fatalities at Pulse Orlando nightclub in Orlando, Florida,, June 12, 2016.
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Bomb disposal officers check for bombs at an apartment complex possibly linked to the fatal shootings at an Orlando nightclub, June 12, 2016, in Fort Pierce, Florida.
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Angel Mendez, standing outside the Orlando Regional Medical Center, holds up a cell phone photo trying to get information about his brother Jean C. Mendez that was at the Pulse Nightclub where a shooting involving multiple fatalities occurred, June 12, 2016, in Orlando, Florida.
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A police officer stands guard outside the Orlando Regional Medical Center hospital after a fatal shooting at a nearby Pulse Orlando nightclub in Orlando, Florida, June 12, 2016.
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An injured man is escorted out of the Pulse nightclub after a shooting rampage, June 12, 2016, in Orlando, Florida.
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Donors lineup to donate blood following a mass shooting at an Orlando nightclub.
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People wait outside the emergency entrance of the Orlando Regional Medical Center hospital after a shooting involving multiple fatalities at Pulse Orlando nightclub in Orlando, Florida, June 12, 2016.
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Emergency personnel wait with stretchers at the emergency entrance to Orlando Regional Medical Center hospital for the arrival of patients from the scene of a fatal shooting at Pulse Orlando nightclub in Orlando, Florida, June 12, 2016.
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Terry DeCarlo, executive director of the LGBT Center of Central Florida, center, is comforted by Orlando City Commissioner Patty Sheehan, right, after a shooting involving multiple fatalities at a nightclub in Orlando, Florida, June 12, 2016.
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President Barack Obama arrives to make a statement on the mass shooting at an Orlando, Florida, nightclub in the White House Briefing Room in Washington, DC on June 12, 2016.
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Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, second from right, and Orlando Police Chief John Mina arrive to a news conference after a fatal shooting at Pulse Orlando nightclub in Orlando, Florida, June 12, 2016.
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Jermaine Towns, left, and Brandon Shuford wait down the street from a multiple shooting at a nightclub in Orlando, Florida, June 12, 2016. Towns said his brother was in the club at the time.
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Orlando police officers are seen outside of Pulse nightclub after a fatal shooting and hostage situation on June 12, 2016, in Orlando, Florida.
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FBI assistant special agent in charge Ron Hopper, center, answers questions from members of the media after a fatal shooting at Pulse Orlando nightclub in Orlando, Florida, June 12, 2016. Listening are Orlando Police Chief John Mina, left, and Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs.
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An Orange County Sheriff's Department SWAT member arrives to the scene of a fatal shooting at Pulse Orlando nightclub in Orlando, Florida, Sunday, June 12, 2016.
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Members of the Orlando City Fire Rescue seen around Pulse nightclub after a fatal shooting and hostage situation on June 12, 2016, in Orlando, Florida.
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ORLANDO, FL - JUNE 12: FBI agents investigate near the damaged rear wall of the Pulse Nightclub where Omar Mateen allegedly killed at least 50 people on June 12, 2016 in Orlando, Florida. The mass shooting killed at least 50 people and injuring 53 others in what is the deadliest mass shooting in the countryu00d5s history. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
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Bystanders wait down the street from a mass shooting at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla., Sunday, June 12, 2016.
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Brandon Shuford, left, waits down the street from the scene of a shooting involving multiple fatalities at a nightclub in Orlando, Fla., Sunday, June 12, 2016.
In Toronto, police tweeted that they were reassessing security for all pride events for the month. A candlelight vigil was being planned for downtown Sunday night and Pride Toronto said that as a community it stood united during a painful time.
"What a terrible day," Pride in London tweeted. "But let's remember that #LoveWins and we show our strength by coming together in Pride."
The Muslim Alliance for Sexual and Gender Diversity said it was devastated. It urged others not to rush to assign blame to any individual or group beyond the shooter.
"It is also not lost on us that this horrific tragedy occurred during LGBTQ Pride month, which this year coincides with the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, typically a period of peace and intense self-reflection," it said in a statement. "It pains us to see that these periods of joy, celebration, and peace have been marred so violently with such horror."
The Harvey Milk Foundation, created in honor of one of the first openly gay elected officials in the United States, said prayers and love were not enough. Hate continues to cause too much grief, it said.
"As we reach out to comfort the Orlando families, and as we support the courage for the injured to heal, may we also have the strength to address and deal with the roots of hatred and separation that target any minority community with violence, any where in the world," the foundation said.
