Orlando Massacre One Year Later

This is a very emotionally mixed weekend for our LGBTQ community as many cities celebrate Pride & march for LGBTQ equality June 12th marks the first anniversary when 49 people many from our LGBTQ community were killed by a gunman on Latin Night at Pulse Nightclub in Orlando, Florida carrying out the most deadly shooting in US modern history. Jessica Stern, Executive Director of OutRight action International stated, “What happened in Orlando was a tragedy & unfortunately the persecution of LGBTIQ people globally has not deescalated since then. In the past year we have seen so many large scale attacks on LGBTIQ communities globally, from the mass killings in Orlando, to the arrests & torture of over 100 gay men in Chechnya - some of whom are still in prisons and mass arrests in Indonesia. What we had during the Orlando shootings was global recognition & condemnation of violence & discrimination against the LGBTIQ community. This was no more evident than in the historic statement by the United Nations Security Council, which for the first time included a reference to sexual orientation & so acknowledged the anti-gay hate motivated bias in the attack. This important statement sets a precedence in the international peace and security arena that LGBT are being targeted; that this is a matter of international concern. If we ever hope to stop the escalation of violence against LGBTIQ people, we need a global response like the one we had during Orlando. The human rights & lives of LGBTIQ people must be recognized, respected & protected.”
For More Info: outrightinternational.org
LISTEN: Provincetown International Film Festival June 14 to 18