LOS ANGELES (June 17, 2016) The AIDS Healthcare Foundation’s Latino Outreach and Understanding Division (LOUD) mourns the 49 individuals murdered in the Orlando attack this past Sunday morning at Pulse nightclub. Sunday morning’s incident was an attack on the LGBT community and specifically a direct attack on what was deemed a safe space for these individuals. For many LGBT Latino residents in the area, Pulse was one of the few spaces where members of our community could freely express themselves without judgment. The dozens of young Latino gay men whose lives were cut short due to this act of hate and violence is a devastating loss not only for their immediate families, but for every person who upholds this country’s values of freedom and liberty.
“As we mourn the loss of the 49 victims, we should honor their lives by being careful not use this horrific attack as a platform for personal or political gain,” said Hector Torres, chair of the Latino Outreach and Understanding Division (LOUD). “We must come together to use this as an opportunity to address the issues that impede any community from living authentic and safe lives. Hate is not a response to hate.”
“LOUD strives to address the social and health disparities that impact the lives of LGBT Latinos across the U.S. While addressing homophobia and transphobia seems to be common in our work, we didn’t imagine that we would need to add gun violence to our list of priorities,” continued Torres. “We stand united to create safe spaces for LGBT Latinos and will continue to fight against all forms of hate and violence directed at our community.”
#weareorlando #somosloud #saytheirnames
