The lives of 49 Pulse patrons were stolen on June 12 Sunday morning. The impact of the massacre has left the nation divided.
Thursday at Friends Congregational Church, I had the privilege to cover the Bryan-College Station candlelight vigil for Orlando victims. Speakers from different backgrounds gathered not to showcase their differences but to demonstrate the power of a single fact that unites us all: we are all human. As speakers expressed their utmost sorrow, I was amazed at how not one po- liticized the tragedy and instead chose to mourn the loss of human life. At one point, Pastor Dan De Leon asked every attendee to turn to the person on either side and say “I love you unconditionally.” So what can we learn from De Leon?
Perhaps we should take away not the hate that caused the crime but the resilience and love of communities across the country in the aftermath. Instead of focusing on how we can use the massacre to promote or bash political opinions, we can focus on the ral- lying support of members and allies across the world.
The lives that were lost are not going to come back and the pangs of the calamity will be felt forever by the victims’ loved ones. Members of the LGBTQ community: please keep dreaming, keep fighting, keep believing. I will be here to support you and mourn with you because you are human. We must search more for ways that connect us rather than divide us.
Thursday at Friends Congregational Church, I had the privilege to cover the Bryan-College Station candlelight vigil for Orlando victims. Speakers from different backgrounds gathered not to showcase their differences but to demonstrate the power of a single fact that unites us all: we are all human. As speakers expressed their utmost sorrow, I was amazed at how not one po- liticized the tragedy and instead chose to mourn the loss of human life. At one point, Pastor Dan De Leon asked every attendee to turn to the person on either side and say “I love you unconditionally.” So what can we learn from De Leon?
Perhaps we should take away not the hate that caused the crime but the resilience and love of communities across the country in the aftermath. Instead of focusing on how we can use the massacre to promote or bash political opinions, we can focus on the ral- lying support of members and allies across the world.
The lives that were lost are not going to come back and the pangs of the calamity will be felt forever by the victims’ loved ones. Members of the LGBTQ community: please keep dreaming, keep fighting, keep believing. I will be here to support you and mourn with you because you are human. We must search more for ways that connect us rather than divide us.
