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Dear John,

I hope this email finds you safe and well. I am sorry that once again, I have to send you an email like this—sad, angry, and forced to live the unbelievable.

Again, we read about the loss of life of LGBTQ people and their allies in a place where they should feel the safest and experience the most community, where they go to find joy and to dance.

Again, we feel the anger over this endless inaction—inaction of those who don’t face the brunt of gun violence. What we know from Williams Institute research is that the consequences of doing nothing about gun control do not fall evenly. They fall heavily on LGBTQ people, people of color, those with lower incomes, and too often the young.

It’s almost inconceivable the level of violence against LGBTQ people our policymakers will tolerate. But then again, they tolerate unbelievable amounts of violence against people of color, against women, against not only our children but their own.

Where to find hope? In pride. I am so proud of the heroes who stepped up and leapt in when our elected officials would not: the army veteran, the father, the friends, the drag queens, and others whose instincts told them exactly what to do. They didn’t need to check a poll to find their courage or to experience their shared humanity. I’m so fiercely proud of the community that is coming together in Colorado and nationally, of the LGBTQ people and their allies who refuse to stop creating community and refuse to let the drag shows or the dancing end.

And I am proud to be in this fight with you. Through our research, the Williams Institute will continue to document that while Club Q and Pulse catch the nation’s attention, violence against LGBTQ people happens every day. We will continue to document that LGBTQ people experience more hate crimes than any other group on a per capita basis. We will continue our innovative legislative efforts to make the law recognize that an LGBTQ life is just as valuable as any other life by ending the gay and trans panic defense in every state. We will continue to document the epidemic of violence against LGBTQ people until we can document research-based solutions that work.

Our job is to make it impossible to dismiss Club Q, the killing of a trans woman, or the use of a gun in an LGBTQ youth suicide as “an isolated incident.” Through our research, we will show that these stories represent the experiences of thousands of LGBTQ people, and they can no longer be ignored.

We will continue, with you, until this nightmare of inaction is over.

Together with you today in sorrow and solidarity,
Brad

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