As members of the LGBTQ and Muslim communities in America, we are joined in solidarity, grief and outrage at the horrific attack that unfolded in Orlando on June 12. Our hearts, our thoughts and our prayers are with the victims, their families and the LGBTQ communities, particularly LGBTQ Latino communities.

In this moment of immense sadness and outrage, we stand together united against fear, hate and violence. We will not lose hope in the people and communities around us because we know we are stronger together.

In standing together, hand in hand, across every faith, we send a powerful message to those who seek to divide us using hatred and violence: love is stronger than hate and hope will defeat fear.

We draw our hope and our inspiration by the example set by hundreds of inspiring Floridians who lined up around city blocks in Orlando, answering the call to donate blood.

We draw our hope and our inspiration in the example set by brave first responders who ran into – not away from – harm to help the wounded and prevent further violence.

We draw our hope and our inspiration from the hundreds of interfaith vigils that have sprung up across the world with a clear message: love is stronger than hate.

In the days ahead there will be more calls to define an enemy. There will be cynical efforts to pit groups of Americans – many of whom share a history of being victims of suspicion and discrimination – against one another and to increase surveillance of entire communities, based solely on how they look or how they pray.

We stand united against these efforts to divide us. We are reminded that as our communities stand together, we are in fact one community – which includes LGBTQ Latinos and LGBTQ Muslims, who are targeted both as Muslims and as members of the LGBTQ community.

Now is the time for people of all faiths, sexual orientations, gender identities, and backgrounds, to come together and refuse to allow this tragic act of violence and hate to divide us.

We are stronger together, and together, we will move forward with love and acceptance for all.

Siyen,

American Civil Liberties Union LGBT Project
American Muslim Advisory Council (AMAC)
American Muslim Health Professionals
Arcus Foundation
Sant Resous Biseksyèl
Center for Black Equity
Center for LGBTQ and Gender Studies in Religion
Centerlink: The Community of LGBT Centers
Coalition of South Florida Muslim Organizations (COSMOS)
Courage Campaign
Emerge USA
Federasyon Egalite
Egalite Florid
Faith Matters Network
Family Equality Council
Egalite Eta Jaden an
Gay Men’s Health Crisis (GMHC)
Georgia Association of Muslim Lawyers
GetEQUAL
Fondasyon Gill
GLAAD
Avoka ak Defansè Legal GLBTQ (GLAD)
GLMA: Health Professionals Advancing LGBT Equality
GLSEN
GSA Network – Genders & Sexualities Alliance Network
Kanpay Dwa Moun
interACT: Advocates for Intersex Youth
Islamic Networks Group (ING)
Islamic Society of Central Jersey
Lambda Legal
Marriage Equality USA
Dr. Ingrid Mattson, Former President, Islamic Society of North America; Chair of Islamic Studies in the Faculty of Theology at Huron College at Western University
MECCA Institute
Pwojè Avansman Mouvman an
Muslim Advocates
Muslim Alliance for Sexual and Gender Diversity (MASGD)
Muslim Bar Association of New York
Muslim Community Network
Muslim Justice League
Muslim Legal Fund of America
Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC)
Muslim Wellness Foundation
Muslims for Progressive Values
Muslims Make it Plain
Muslims4peace.org
National Black Justice Coalition
Sant Nasyonal pou Dwa Lesbyèn yo
National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE)
National Coalition of Anti-­Violence Programs
Gwoup Travay Nasyonal LGBTQ
New Jersey Muslim Lawyers Association
New Ways Ministry
NMAC
Out & Equal Workplace Advocates
PFLAG National
Pride at Work
Religious Institute
Services & Advocacy for GLBT Elders (SAGE)
The National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce
The New York City Anti-‐Violence Project
Pwojè Trevor la
Trans People of Color Coalition
Trans United Fund
Transgender Law Center (TLC)
Universal Muslim Association of America
Evan Wolfson, Former President, Freedom to Marry
Women’s Alliance for Theology, Ethics, and Ritual (WATER)

The open letter is also available in the following languages:

العربية | Panyòl

As U.S. government leaders continue to grapple with addressing gun violence-prevention following last weekend’s homophobic massacre at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, LGBTQ and gun violence-prevention advocates and activists are calling for more stringent checks to keep guns out of dangerous hands.

The Orlando tragedy, the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history, highlights how vulnerable LGBTQ communities are to hate-fueled violence, especially LGBTQ communities of color.

Hate violence has risen sharply in recent years, with a 20% increase in reported LGBTQ homicides in the U.S. between 2014 and 2015, according to a study released this week by The National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs (NCAVP). Of the homicides reported last year, 62% were LGBTQ people of color.

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) hate crime statistics tell us year after year that people are most frequently targeted for hate violence based on personal characteristics related to race, religion, and sexual orientation. According to The Williams Institute, gay men report being victims of violent hate crimes at a higher rate than any other targeted group, and these crimes are more violent and result in hospitalization more often.

And yet we cannot ignore the fact that transgender people are at great risk of being victims of hate violence because of their gender identity and this reality is even worse for those who are also targeted on the basis of their race, ethnicity, class, and citizenship status. Fifty four percent of all hate-violence related LGBTQ homicides were transgender women of color, according to the NCAVP study.

We recognize the need to address the bigotry that motivates acts of violence toward LGBTQ people, and we also recognize that such violence is far more deadly when carried out with firearms.

Any solutions to the problem of hate violence, including anti-LGBTQ violence, must address the alarmingly easy access that bigots have to such deadly weapons. For example, under current law, people convicted of violent hate crimes can legally buy and possess guns. This is unacceptable.

With each new massacre, most recently the one in Orlando, we hope the number of homicides has pushed Americans over the threshold of tolerance for hatred fueled by people who seek to divide the country; for weak gun laws that arm those with hate in their hearts; and for the more than 90 victims of gun killings nationwide each day, affecting people of all backgrounds, sexual orientations, and gender identities.

Assault-style weapons, like the Sig Sauer MCX rifle used in Sunday’s Pulse nightclub shooting, can be purchased legally in the state of Florida without a background check – as long as the purchase is made from an unlicensed seller.

Eighteen states have already taken steps to close this dangerous “unlicensed sale loophole.”  But in the remaining states, including Florida, anyone can buy a gun from an unlicensed seller with no background check, no questions asked.

Under current U.S. federal law, people on terror watch lists can legally buy guns, exploiting this “terror gap.” Since 2004, more than 2,000 terror suspects have taken advantage of this loophole.  But we also recognize how this screening mechanism has the dangerous potential to profile specific communities on the basis of their actual or perceived race, religion, national origin, and other attributes.

Orlando is the sixth mass shooting  in the U.S. since January 2009 to be investigated as an act of terrorism by the FBI. Americans are 25 times more likely than people in other developed countries to fall victim to a gun homicide.

The federal background check system established in 1994 by the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act has blocked more than 2.6 million gun sales to prohibited purchasers at licensed dealers; however, an estimated 40% of gun sales across the U.S. take place without a background check, primarily at gun shows and online.

We urge Congress to make a start towards stronger protections against gun violence nationwide by enacting laws to:

1.  Prevent known and suspected terrorists and those convicted of violent hate crimes from legally buying guns.

2.  Ensure that criminal background checks are required on all gun sales, including online and at gun shows.

Siyen,

Listed alphabetically as of June 16, 2016

AIDS Alabama
Americans for Responsible Solutions
The Arcus Foundation
Alye Atlèt
Auburn Theological Seminary
Believe Out Loud
BiNet USA
Sant Resous Biseksyèl
The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence United with The Million Mom March
Campaign To Unload
Congregation Beit Simchat Torah
Fondasyon David Bohnett la
Equality Alabama
Federasyon Egalite
Egalite Florid
Equality Illinois
Equality New Mexico
Equality North Carolina
Equality Pennsylvania
Everytown for Gun Safety
Fair Wisconsin
Faith in America
Family Equality Council
Freedom to Work
Gay Men’s Health Crisis
GLAAD
Avoka ak defansè legal GLBTQ yo
GLMA: Health Professionals Advancing LGBT Equality
GLSEN
GroundSpark/The Respect for All Project
GSA Network – Genders & Sexualities Alliance Network
International Imperial Court System
Lambda Legal
LPAC
National Black Justice Coalition
Sant Nasyonal pou Dwa Lesbyèn yo
Sant Nasyonal pou Egalite Transjan
National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce
Gwoup Travay Nasyonal LGBTQ
NMAC: National Minority AIDS Council
National Religious Leadership Roundtable
New York City Anti-Violence Project
Yon Kolorado
Open and Affirming Coalition of the United Church of Christ
Out & Equal Workplace Advocates
OutServe-SLDN
Pride at Work
Services & Advocacy for GLBT Elders (SAGE)
Stonewall National Museum & Archives
Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund
Pwojè Trevor la
United Church of Christ Justice and Witness Ministries
Women’s Alliance for Theology, Ethics and Ritual (WATER)

The open letter is also available in the following languages:

العربية | Panyòl | Français

We the undersigned organizations working on the front lines of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) movement share in the profound grief for those who were killed and many more who were wounded during Latin Night at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida. Their lives were lost or forever altered in this devastating act of violence targeting LGBTQ people. Our hearts go out to all the family and friends touched by this horrific act. We know their lives will never be the same again.

This national tragedy happened against the backdrop of anti-LGBTQ legislation sweeping this country and we must not forget that in this time of grief. Unity and an organized response in the face of hatred is what we owe the fallen and the grieving. Collective resolve across national, racial and political lines will be required to turn the tide against anti-LGBTQ violence. Our response to this horrific act, committed by one individual, will have a deep impact on Muslim communities in this country and around the world. We as an intersectional movement cannot allow anti-Muslim sentiment to be the focal point as it distracts from the larger issue, which is the epidemic of violence that LGBTQ people, including those in the Muslim community, are facing in this country.

The animus and violence toward LGBTQ people is not news to our community. It is our history, and it is our reality. In 1973, 32 LGBTQ people died in an arson fire at an LGBTQ Upstairs Lounge in New Orleans. More than forty years later, similar acts of anti-LGBTQ violence are commonplace. Crimes motivated by bias due to sexual orientation and gender identity were the second largest set of hate crimes documented by the FBI in 2015 (over 20 percent). Murders and violence against transgender people globally have taken more than 2000 lives over the last nine years. Bias crimes against US immigrant populations, which include significant numbers of LGBTQ people, have increased over the past decade as anti-immigrant rhetoric has escalated.

For those of us who carry multiple marginalized identities, the impact of this violence and discrimination has even more severe consequences. These intersectional identities and their ramifications are apparent at every level in the Orlando tragedy, which disproportionately affected Latino/a members of our communities, and has xenophobic consequences that threaten LGBTQ Muslims. According to the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs (NCAVP), there were 24 reports of hate violence related homicides in 2015, and 62% of those victims were LGBTQ people of color. Transgender and gender nonconforming people made up 67% of the homicides, the majority of whom were transgender women of color. The violence against transgender and gender nonconforming people has continued into 2016 with 13 reported individual homicides this year alone. NCAVP research on hate violence shows that LGBTQ people experience violence not only by strangers, but also in their everyday environments by employers, coworkers, landlords and neighbors. The Orlando shooting is simply an extreme instance of the kind of violence that LGBTQ people encounter every day.

As LGBTQ people who lived through the AIDS crisis, we know what it looks like and feels like to be scapegoated and isolated in the midst of a crisis that actually requires solidarity, empathy and collaboration from all quarters. We appeal to all in our movement and all who support us to band together in rejecting hatred and violence in all its shape shifting forms. Let us stand united as a diverse LGBTQ community of many faiths, races, ethnicities, nationalities and backgrounds.

Siyen,

Arcus Foundation
Believe Out Loud
BiNet USA
Sant Resous Biseksyèl
Center for Black Equity, Inc.
CenterLink: The Community of LGBT Centers
The Consortium of Higher Education LGBT Resource Professionals
The Council for Global Equality
Courage Campaign
Federasyon Egalite
Family Equality Council
Freedom for All Americans
Freedom to Work
Avoka ak Defansè Legal GLBTQ (GLAD)
Gay Men’s Health Crisis
The Gill Foundation
GLAAD
GLMA: Health Professionals Advancing LGBT Equality
GLSEN
Genders & Sexualities Alliance Network
The Harvey Milk Foundation
Kanpay Dwa Moun
interACT: Advocates for Intersex Youth
The Johnson Family Foundation
Lambda Legal
MAP
Marriage Equality USA
Muslim Alliance for Sexual and Gender Diversity
National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs
National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce
National Black Justice Coalition
Sant Nasyonal pou Dwa Lesbyèn yo
Sant Nasyonal pou Egalite Transjan
National Council of La Raza
Gwoup Travay Nasyonal LGBTQ
National Minority Aids Council (NMAC)
National Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance
The New York City Anti-Violence Project
Out & Equal Workplace Advocates
OutRight Action International
The Palette Fund
PFLAG National
Pride at Work
Services & Advocacy for GLBT Elders (SAGE)
Southerners on New Ground (SONG)
SpeakOUT Boston
The T*Circle Collective
Tarab NYC
Transgender Education Network of Texas
Trans People of Color Coalition
Sant Lwa Transjan
Pwojè Trevor la
The Williams Institute

We stand in solidarity with the LGBTQ community of Florida. Our solemn thoughts are with those who have died and those who were injured and traumatized. Our hearts go out to the families and friends who have suffered senseless loss.

Those looking for resources, wishing to help, or for information please visit:

www.WeAreOrlando.org

Egalite Florid

Donate to support the victims and families

Community Statements

LGBTQ Groups Call For Unity in the Wake of Orlando Shooting

Muslim-­LGBTQ Unity Statement in Response to Divisive Rhetoric After Orlando Shooting

LGBTQ Latinx Groups and Allies Reaffirm Resolve to End Violence Against Marginalized Communities

LGBTQ and Gun Violence-Prevention Groups Call for Disarming of Terror Following Orlando Shooting

GLAD and a coalition of 13 other LGBT, racial justice, and health equity organizations have filed an rapò amicus curiae nan Whole Woman’s Health v. Cole asking the U.S. Supreme Court to strike down draconian restrictions on abortion providers enacted by the State of Texas in 2013. If upheld, the restrictions would lead to the closing of most abortion clinics in the state.

The brief urges the Court to carefully scrutinize the state’s asserted justification for the law, as the Court has done with other laws that infringe upon fundamental freedoms. The State of Texas has argued that the law protects the health of women seeking abortion, but the evidence at trial showed just the opposite. Medical organizations such as the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the American Medical Association, and the American Public Health Association have explained that the restrictions imposed by the new law are medically unnecessary and endanger, rather than advance, women’s health.

“Spurious medical claims lead only to mischief and certainly cannot justify governments infringing on people’s constitutionally-protected liberties,” said Mary L. Bonauto, GLAD’s Civil Rights Project Director. “We urge the Court to give due scrutiny to the health claims asserted by the state of Texas in supporting this injurious law which, if allowed to stand, will cause great harm to millions of women in the state for no public benefit.”

Pseudo-science has been used throughout American history to exclude individuals and groups from the full protection of essential constitutional liberties, including laws barring interracial marriage, excluding women from certain professions, permitting the forced sterilization of those deemed “inferior,” and criminalizing and discriminating against LGBT people. GLAD and its fellow amici urge the Court to look to this history and fulfill its constitutional obligation to examine carefully the State’s asserted justifications for restricting women’s fundamental right to reproductive autonomy.

In addition to GLAD, the organizations filing the brief are the National Center for Lesbian Rights, the Equal Justice Society, the National Black Justice Coalition, the Family Equality Council, the Human Rights Campaign, the National LGBTQ Task Force, GLMA: Health Professionals Advancing LGBT Equality, Equality Federation, the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States, Immigration Equality, the National Health Law Program, Movement Advancement Project, and Bay Area Lawyers for Individual Freedom.