Commemorating 10 years since Pulse massacre, LGBTQ nightmare
Pulse Nightclub. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.
Ten years ago today, the world shattered for the LGBTQ community. The mass shooting at Pulse Nightclub was a violent attack on a place of joy, safety, and freedom. A decade later, the grief is still heavy. The survivors and the families who lost loved ones still carry deep physical and emotional scars. Their pain did not end when the news cameras left. As the Church, we must acknowledge that ongoing suffering.
Sadly, the hatred behind that tragedy has not gone away. Instead, we see a constant effort by anti-LGBTQ people and institutions to silence LGBTQ voices. This hostility is especially painful because it often comes from civil and religious institutions—the very places that should offer safety and justice.
I know this pain personally. I am an LGBTQ person, and today I have a voice in an institution that once silenced people like me: the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). Because of that journey, I know how much damage institutional exclusion can cause. When religious groups use faith to reject or silence people, they distort the Gospel. The Church is supposed to be a place of love and sanctuary, not a source of harm.
On this anniversary, prayers are not enough. We must commit to action. We must stand with our LGBTQ siblings and resist any institution that tries to erase their dignity or silence their truth. Our faith calls us to speak out against bigotry and help build a world where everyone can live safely and openly.
Today, I say their names aloud:
Stanley Almodovar III, 23
Amanda L. Alvear, 25
Oscar A. Aracena Montero, 26
Rodolfo Ayala Ayala, 33
Alejandro Barrios Martinez, 21
Martin Benitez Torres, 33
Antonio Davon Brown, 29
Darryl Roman Burt II, 29
Angel L. Candelario-Padro, 28
Simón Adrian Carrillo Fernández, 31
Juan Chavez Martinez, 25
Luis Daniel Conde, 39
Cory James Connell, 21
Tevin Eugene Crosby, 25
Deonka Deidra Drayton, 32
Leroy Valentin Fernandez, 25
Mercedez Marisol Flores, 26
Peter Ommy Gonzalez Cruz, 22
Juan Ramon Guerrero, 22
Paul Terrell Henry, 41
Frank Hernandez, 27
Miguel Angel Honorato, 30
Javier Jorge Reyes, 40
Jason Benjamin Josaphat, 19
Eddie Jamal Droy Justice, 30
Anthony Luis Laureano Disla, 25
Christopher Andrew Leinonen, 32
Brenda Marquez McCool, 49
Jean Carlos Mendez Perez, 35
Kimberly Jean Morris, 37
Akyra Monet Murray, 18
Jean Carlos Nieves Rodríguez, 27
Luis Omar Ocasio Capo, 20
Geraldo A. Ortiz Jimenez, 25
Eric Ivan Ortiz-Rivera, 36
Joel Rayon Paniagua, 32
Enrique L. Rios, Jr., 25
Yilmary Rodríguez Solivan, 24
Christopher Joseph Sanfeliz, 24
Xavier Emmanuel Serrano Rosado, 35
Gilberto R. Silva Menendez, 25
Edward Sotomayor, Jr., 34
Shane Evan Tomlinson, 33
Jonathan A. Camuy Vega, 24
Franky Jimmy DeJesus Velázquez, 50
Juan Pablo Rivera Velázquez, 37
Luis Sergio Vielma, 22
Luis Daniel Wilson-Leon, 37
Jerald Arthur Wright, 31
