A devastating act of hate.
‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

















[image: SPLC logo] <[link removed]>






,

Four years ago today, a gunman entered the Pulse LGBTQ nightclub in Orlando, Florida, and committed one of the most devastating acts of hate we’ve seen in our nation.

Forty-nine people were killed and 53 others wounded in the attack on the LGBTQ and Latinx communities. We grieve for their families and friends. And, we are honoring them by showing solidarity with the LGBTQ and Latinx communities and continuing the fight against hate.

The Pulse murders occurred during Pride Month in a nightclub that acted as a haven for LGBTQ people in Orlando to celebrate their whole selves. Anti-LGBTQ hate groups and some members of the radical right, in a sickening display of bigotry, praised the gunman after the attack.

It’s clear that the LGBTQ community remains under threat — the 2019 SPLC Year in Hate and Extremism <[link removed]> report showed a nearly 43% spike in anti-LGBTQ hate groups. The anti-LGBTQ hate groups that we list often couch their opposition to LGBTQ rights in rhetoric and harmful pseudoscience that demonizes LGBTQ people as threats to children, society and often public health. They have also fortified their influence over policy decisions and mainstream culture in recent years. LGBTQ hate even has a home in the halls of the White House: The Trump administration has welcomed members of these hate groups who have designed new, oppressive policies.

What’s more, our country has seen a disturbing rise in institutional bias and threats to the LGBTQ community. People of color are especially at risk. Violence against transgender and gender nonconforming people of color is rising each year, and it’s on all of us to take a stand against hate.

In remembrance of those who were killed at Pulse, we must commit, neighbor to neighbor, to standing up for each other’s human rights. That’s how we will continue to grow a national movement against anti-LGBTQ hate — and hate wherever it lives — in America.

In solidarity,
Lecia Brooks

P.S. Take the Y’all Means All pledge to support our shared vision of uplifting LGBTQ people in the Deep South and across the country. <[link removed]>











DONATE <[link removed]>























[image: Facebook Icon] <[link removed]> [image: Twitter Icon] <[link removed]> [image: Instagram Icon] <[link removed]>


Update Preferences <[link removed]> | Unsubscribe <[link removed]> | Privacy Policy <[link removed]> | Contact Us <[link removed]>








Was this message forwarded to you? Sign up to receive SPLC updates. <[link removed]> Pick up SPLC merchandise from the SPLC store. <[link removed]> Make a recurring donation to the SPLC and become a Friend of the Center. <[link removed]> Make a donation in someone else's honor and send them an eCard. <[link removed]> Make a planned gift to the SPLC and become a Partner for the Future. <[link removed]> Take advantage of corporate matching gift opportunities and find out if your employer will match your donation to the SPLC. <[link removed]>







Southern Poverty Law Center
400 Washington Avenue
Montgomery, AL 36104
334.956.8200 // splcenter.org <[link removed]>
Copyright 2020