On June 12th, 2016, 49 men and women lost their lives because someone decided that they had the right to play God. The Pulse Nightclub was Omar Mateen's target because of his hatred of a group of people who had done nothing to him. He was disgusted by their way of life, so much so that he took it upon himself to rid the world of them. In order to do so, he acquired a semi-automatic rifle and a semi-automatic pistol, despite having been interviewed by the FBI twice and being put under watch.
Forty-nine people lost their lives that night. That's 49 first dates, 49 sons and daughters, 49 people whose lives should have been longer. The nation mourns for them and their families, along with the 53 injured and the other people who were there and managed to escape without injury. This attack is another one of many that America has experienced. Yes, it is the worst shooting in modern American history. Yes, it is the biggest attack on a gay target. This attack was like no other of it's kind before it, and if we as a nation don't do something soon, it will not be the last.
There are a few ways that America could've stopped this attack, and all previous mass shootings, but I will only list two. First, fix the gun laws. Before anyone starts yelling about how "oh, she wants to take our guns," let me clarify. Yes, I do want to take away your guns, but only if you don't meet some psychological requirements of if you have any type of criminal record. If America were to make it as hard and through for someone to get a gun as it is for someone to get a driver's license, we wouldn't have these problems. If we had a process that we could use to ensure that only those who are mentally sane and responsible would be able to get a gun, we'd be fine.
Another thing that America could've done in order to stop such a thing from happening: stop the spread of hate. Stop the Islamophobia, the homophobia, the racism and the sexism shown in our media and we'd be a country were there would be no chance of a mass shooting. There wouldn't be instances where you'd see news of a hate crime on your newsfeed, because there would be no hate. Hate wouldn't have the chance to spread into a large enough scale to cause problems. If the media would stop covering people like Donald Trump and start covering instances where love wins, we as a nation would benefit.
As a gay Puerto Rican, the attacks hit me hard. Not nearly as hard as the victims and their families, but knowing that such a thing can happen here in America doesn't make me feel safe anymore. That even though we as a community gained such ground last year with the legalization of gay marriage, people still hate us. They still kill us.
It makes me want to hide parts of myself so that someone doesn't take it upon themselves to end my life. But it's important to stand tall and be proud of who you are. Hiding away is not going to make things better. It's not going to change anything. Speak up for what's right and remember that no matter what, love always wins.
