‘It’s my Florida too’: Pulse shootg survivor Brandon Wolf on beg Black, gay and the anti-Ron DeSantis | US news | The Guardian

Contents:

• 50 KILLED FLORIDA GAY CLUB MASSACRE, ADLIT MASS SHOOTG US HISTORY
• ‘IT’S MY FLORIDA TOO’: PULSE SHOOTG SURVIVOR BRANDON WOLF ON BEG BLACK, GAY AND THE ANTI-RON DESANTIS
• 50 AD, ISLAMIC TERRORISM TIE EYED ORLANDO GAY BAR SHOOTG
• ORLANDO NIGHTCLUB SHOOTG: MASS CASUALTI AFTER GUNMAN OPENS FIRE GAY CLUB
• AT LEAST 50 DEAD ORLANDO GAY CLUB SHOOTG, SPECT PLEDGED ALLEGIANCE TO ISIS, OFFICIALS SAY
• UPDATE 1-U.N. SECURY COUNCIL NMNS ORLANDO GAY NIGHTCLUB MASSACRE

50 KILLED FLORIDA GAY CLUB MASSACRE, ADLIT MASS SHOOTG US HISTORY

But this week, the cy is also memorializg a years ago today, a gunman opened fire Pulse nightclub, a gay club Orlando, killg 49 people and woundg more than 50. (AP) — The 49 people killed a mass shootg at a gay nightclub Florida were honored Orlando and around the world on Saturday, the fifth anniversary of the attack.

Young, an openly gay man who reported to the scene the night of the shootg, said he’s seen iendships strengthen and the muny une over the past five years. A homophobic ISIS sympathizer killed at least 50 people and wound 53 others durg a rampage at a gay nightclub Florida early Sunday — markg the untry’s adlit mass shootg. Spected gay nightclub mass shooter Omar Mateen.

Mateen’s father told NBC that his son recently got “very angry” at the sight of men kissg each other Miami and said his anti-gay fury might have triggered the massacre. The elr Mateen told NBC that his son’s rampage “has nothg to do wh relign, ” and suggted was motivated by anti-gay hatred.

‘IT’S MY FLORIDA TOO’: PULSE SHOOTG SURVIVOR BRANDON WOLF ON BEG BLACK, GAY AND THE ANTI-RON DESANTIS

Across central Florida, the 49 victims killed and dozens more survivors of the massacre at a gay-iendly nightclub were remembered wh the unveilg of a 44-foot (13. (AP) — Across central Florida, the 49 victims killed and dozens more survivors of the massacre at a gay-iendly nightclub were remembered wh the unveilg of a 44-foot (13. One man, so many Mateen opened fire at Pulse, a gay nightclub Orlando, early Sunday — leavg 49 people ad and dozens jured.

NEW YORK -- The gay, lbian and transgenr muny has seen vlence before, om Harvey Milk to Matthew Shepard, and an ever-lengtheng list of transgenr women. Sunday's massacre at a gay nightclub Orlando, Florida, grimly changed the equatn, stirrg munal fears and swiftly promptg tighter secury at gay pri events.

This "is a tragic illtratn of the legimate safety fears that those our LGBT muny live wh every day, " said Mike Rawlg, the mayor of Dallas, where extra police were assigned to a neighborhood that is a hub of the lol gay muny. In a separate cint Sunday, a heavily armed man was arrted Southern California even as Mateen's attack was ongog, tellg police he was on his way to attack a gay pri Jam Wley, of Indiana, had asslt rifl, ammunn and chemils that uld be ed to make an explosive, acrdg to police, who said there was no evince of a nnectn to the Orlando massacre.

50 AD, ISLAMIC TERRORISM TIE EYED ORLANDO GAY BAR SHOOTG

Before Sunday, the most proment cints of vlence agast gays claimed one life at a time. The hight profile of the clud the murr of Milk, a pneerg gay polician San Francis 1978, and the 1998 murr of Shepard, a gay llege stunt Wyomg at the hands of two men who beat him to a a while he was tied to a fence. "There have been a few prev attacks on gay nightclubs, but only one that ed a signifint number of aths.

31, 2013, about 750 people were celebratg New Year's Eve at Neighbours, a popular gay nightclub Seattle, when Mab Masmari poured gasole on a rpeted stairway and set ablaze. Robert Matenc, who works as a host at Neighbours, said the club rpond to the arson attack by addg extra secury guards durg large special events, and trag employe crowd 's attack stck a place that has long been thought of as a safe haven for the muny -- the gay nightclub.

ORLANDO NIGHTCLUB SHOOTG: MASS CASUALTI AFTER GUNMAN OPENS FIRE GAY CLUB

"Nightclubs have always been sacred spac for queer people, plac to gather and glter away om the judgg glar of society, where we uld love and be loved for who we are and how we want to be, " wrote Pl Rshenbh, a clergyman and popular gay wrer, exprsg his heartbreak a lengthy, emotnal post on Facebook which he relled gog out dancg while at semary New many ci, vigils were planned at LGBT muny centers and other gatherg spots to memorate the victims New York Cy, LGBT people and their alli nverged on the Stonewall Inn Greenwich Village spontaneo reactn to the shootg. The Manhattan bar beme a natnal symbol of gay rights after a 1969 police raid led to vlent street ont of the red brick faça, Cameron Cano stood proudly wh a rabow flag draped over her shoulrs.

Stonewall is "where we go when thgs like this happen, " said Andy Humm, host of the "Gay USA" TV gay bars add secury measur, or nsired dog so the aftermath of the Orlando attack. "We have a lot of nightclubs that are gay nightclubs, " Evans said.

"At eagleBOLT, a gay bar Mneapolis, patrons watched big-screen TVs silence as Print Barack Obama nounced the Orlando shootg as an "act of terror. Pl, Mnota, said he to gay bars to relax. So he equented Pulse, a beloved gay nightclub known for star-studd drag shows and bachata-sountracked “Lat Nights.

AT LEAST 50 DEAD ORLANDO GAY CLUB SHOOTG, SPECT PLEDGED ALLEGIANCE TO ISIS, OFFICIALS SAY

“What happened at Pulse was … kd of labeled as a gay issue, when realy wasn’t. But before “Pulse” me to mean “one of the adlit mass shootgs US history, one that primarily targeted people of lor at a gay nightclub, ” Pulse was synonymo wh home. ”Wolf had sought refuge Florida 15 years ago when he was done wh ral Oregon, the childhood home where he suffered embedd racism and homophobia on a daily basis.

Among his motivatns for wrg the book was to reclaim tersectnaly om DeSantis and others on the right who seek to hijack explas: “I wanted to give a human flavour to what tersectnaly actually looks and feels like and what feels like to experience racism and homophobia at the same time. Growg up a nservative majory whe town was difficult bee the same kid who would ll me the N-word on one day would ll me a homophobic slur on another day and I was nstantly navigatg the tersectns of those two thgs. Last month DeSantis’s mpaign released an anti-LGBTQ+ vio assailg Tmp for his past support of gay and transgenr ments: “It is a sry time to be not jt LGBTQ but LGBTQ and Black this state and ultimately that’s the tent.

UPDATE 1-U.N. SECURY COUNCIL NMNS ORLANDO GAY NIGHTCLUB MASSACRE

Police say a mass shootg at a gay nightclub Orlando, Florida, has rulted at least 20 people ad, wh dozens more wound. Gay nightclub.

- A shootg and hostage suatn early Sunday at a Florida nightclub -- which scrib self as "Orlando's hottt gay bar" -- left an timated 50 people ad, cludg the gunman, and more than 50 jured, officials say. At least 50 people were killed and more than 50 others were wound when a gunman opened fire and took hostag at a gay nightclub Orlando, Florida, early Sunday shooter, intified by several law enforcement sourc as Omar Mateen, 29, was killed a shootout wh law enforcement after a three-hour massacre — the worst mass shootg the history of the Uned Stat — began when the gunman stormed the Pulse Nightclub about 2 a.

""This is an pecially heartbreakg day for our iends fellow Amerins who are lbian, gay, bisexual or transgenr, " Obama said, llg the attack "an act of terror and an act of hate. -- Across central Florida, the 49 victims killed and dozens more survivors of the massacre at a gay-iendly nightclub were remembered wh the unveilg of a 44-foot (13.

A pair embrace after exg Parliament Hoe, a gay bar and rort where people were gatherg on June 12, 2016, the wake of the mass shootg at the Pulse nightclub Orlando, Florida.

One of the worst mass shootgs US history claimed 49 liv at Pulse, a gay nightclub Orlando, Florida, on June 12, shootg occurred on the venue's Lat Night, and many of those killed were gunman was killed by police after a three-hour standoff, while people trapped si sperately lled and msaged iends and was the adlit mass shootg the Uned Stat until one year later, when 58 people were murred at a Las Vegas untry mic ncert. Wh at least 50 people killed, the massacre early Sunday morng at an Orlando nightclub is the adlit sgle-day mass shootg the morn history of the Uned Stat — by nearly double the prev most adly are Ameri's adlit mass shootgs morn tim:50 killedAt least 50 people are killed and some 50 others are wound after a gunman opened fire and took hostag at a gay nightclub Orlando, Florida, early on the morng of Sunday June 12. Acrdg to a former roommate, Hennard "hated blacks, Hispanics, gays.

— -- The massacre at an Orlando gay nightclub early this morng has been scribed as a "domtic terror cint, " wh at least 50 ad and 53 jured, officials said, makg the worst mass shootg U. Orlando police tweeted, "The shooter si the nightclub is ad, " referrg to Pulse Nightclub, which bills self on s webse as "Orlando's Premier Gay Night Club. "It's no cince the attack took place where did and when did, " he said reference to the fact that Pulse was a gay nightclub.

-- The FBI is vtigatg reports that Orlando gunman Omar Mateen had been a regular at the gay nightclub he attacked and had ed gay datg apps, a U. A number of possible explanatns and motiv for the bloodbath that left 49 victims ad have emerged, wh Mateen profsg allegiance to the Islamic State group, his ex-wife sayg he was mentally ill, and his father suggtg he was driven by hatred of picture grew more plex as patrons of the Pulse me forward to say that they had seen the 29-year-old Amerin-born Mlim there a number of tim or that he had been g gay datg apps.

While acknowledgg he didn't know Mateen well, Van Horn said: "I thk 's possible that he was tryg to al wh his ner mons, of tryg to get rid of his anger of homosexualy.

" Asked if his son was gay, the Afghan immigrant replied: "No. "The elr Mateen said that apart om the time his son got angry a few months ago over seeg two men kissg, he never saw any anti-gay behavr om the past two years, the Islamic State has targeted gay men for ath keepg wh s radil terpretatn of Islam, throwg dozens of them om tall buildgs Iraq and Monday night, about a e om Pulse downtown Orlando, thoands gathered for a vigil to support the victims and survivors. "It was a place that a young 20-year-old who wasn't openly gay felt safe for the first time, " said Cathleen Ds, now 36, who worked at Pulse her 20s.

Orlando, Florida's gay muny is "utter shock" after fallg victim to the worst mass shootg U. Related: Mass Casualti After Gunman Opens Fire Gay Club"We are sayg we are apologizg for the whole cint.

Related: Gay Blood Ban Still Effect Orlando"Gay clubs hold a signifint place LGBTQ history.

We stand solidary wh the LGBTQ muny #Orlando, " the Gay & Lbian Alliance Agast Defamatn (GLAAD) said a Griff, print of the Human Rights Campaign, the natn's largt LGBTQ civil rights group, said he was "vastated. Print Barack Obama said Sunday: "This is an pecially heartbreakg day for all our iends — our fellow Amerins — who are lbian, gay, bisexual or transgenr.

— -- New tails of the horror that transpired si a gay nightclub Orlando, Florida, have started to emerge —- cludg how shooter Omar Mateen lmly pledged allegiance to ISIS durg the rampage — as people across the untry and elsewhere around the world mourn the shootg unfold over the urse of three hours early Sunday morng when Mateen, a lone-wolf gunman, approached the Pulse nightclub armed wh a. MyspaceISIS, which has strongholds Syria and Iraq, has targeted gay men for beatgs and executns the Middle East and has rerd s members throwg men spected of beg gay om the roofs of Mateen's father, Seddique Mateen, told ABC News that his son was born New York and grew up St. "Today, we have intified all 49 victims and we have notified the next of k of all 49 victims, " Dyer gather for a vigil outsi the Stonewall Inn New York for the victims of a mass shootg at an Orlando, Florida gay club, June 12, Lane/EPAPeople gather outsi of the Stonewall Inn New York durg a vigil for the victims of a massacre at a gay nightclub Orlando, June 12, Graff/Getty ImagA rabow flag is held up durg a vigil after the worst mass shootg U.