I scrolled through my Facebook feed Saturday afternoon, and smiled at all the LGBTQ+ pride parade posts in my hometown of Boston. I saw happy faces, declarations of pride and the iconic rainbow balloon arch in the background. I remember thinking how far the LGBTQ+ community has come in recent years. Then I woke up Sunday morning to news of the Orlando shooting, and I remembered that the fight is far from over.
It wasn’t until recently that I learned the club was hosting a Latin night and that most of the victims were Hispanic. I went to the web page the city of Orlando has created for the victims and saw many surnames such as Martinez, Velazquez and Fernandez. This information caught my breath because I am a member of both the LGBTQ+ and Hispanic community. For many cultural reasons it can be especially difficult to come out in a Hispanic family, and while LGBTQ+ representation in the media is improving, much of it is still whitewashed.
Growing up I knew people who were gay or Hispanic, but never both. My grandmother, or Abuelita, asks me if I've found a man yet, and I haven’t had the heart to tell her no—but that I've found a wonderful woman. My father was accepting when I told him, but I had read countless articles telling me it would turn out differently. Coming out can be a difficult experience for everyone, especially if it means a life riddled with fear and discrimination—something people of color and other marginalized groups are all too aware of.
Though it isn’t known if the shooter was targeting the Hispanic community specifically, he has a history of voicing hatred for gays and other minorities, and most of his victims were gay, Latino or both. Whether the victims of this crime were out of the closet, an ally, or simply someone looking forward to a fun night out, one thing is for sure—Each one went to that nightclub knowing they were among friends and an accepting community. That safety and security was robbed from them.
Now is the time to stand up and fight for laws that protect marginalized people. In most states it is still okay to fire someone based on their sexual orientation. Hispanics are stereotyped in the media as undocumented and unintelligent. I endured slurs in high school when classmates learned what my father’s last name was.
I have seen plenty of posts on social media declaring racism and homophobia are no longer problems. I have even read the tweets of those condoning the Orlando shooting and declaring him a hero for massacring a bunch of gays. This mindset sickens me, and unfortunately reminds me that there are people out there who don’t consider me a human being. We are far from the world of complete peace and acceptance that so many think we're living in. That isn’t to say that progress hasn’t been made, but no individual should be murdered for the color of their skin or the person they love. That seems like simple common sense to me.
