Activists sing as they march from St Marks to St. James in #seattle during a vigil for victims of #OrlandoShooting pic.twitter.com/1OoN0blYTv
— Alex Garland (@AGarlandPhoto) June 16, 2016
As hour after after hour fell by in a dramatic filibuster over gun control on the Senate floor, another ceremony was repeated Wednesday night across our own Capitol Hill. For the second time in three years, marchers gathered at St. Mark’s and passed down Broadway on their way to St. James to mark another American shooting massacre.
“Let us pray for our sisters and brothers in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities here and across the nation,” said Mayor Ed Murray, leading a prayer after the marchers arrived at St. James Cathedral on First Hill. “May they know our love, our support, our advocacy, in the light of this horrific act fueled by hatred and cruelty. In the face of hatred, may there be love. In the face of violence, may there be peace. In the face of prejudice, may there be pride.”
Candle light vigil at St.James for #OrlandoShooting victims pic.twitter.com/SXseKNu24q
— Alex Garland (@AGarlandPhoto) June 16, 2016
The event echoed the 2013 march that followed the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in which 20 children between 6 and 7 years old and six adults were murdered. The weapon used in the 2013 massacre was a knock-off of the AR-15 and from the same family of weaponry used in Sunday’s attack at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando.
Earlier this week, Cal Anderson was filled with mourners to mark the latest shooting tragedy and rally to support LGBTQ communities and Pride in the wake of the violence.
While Wednesday’s march felt sadly familiar, the actions in Washington D.C. provided some new hope that the county could finally act more decisively to limit access to deadly weapons like the AR-15. Senator Christopher Murphy of Connecticut was joined by 44 Democratic Senators for his 15-hour hold on the floor. “As we mourn for victims and families impacted by the horrific violence and act of terror against LGBT and Latino Americans in Orlando this Sunday, we are once again reminded that nowhere is safe from the horrific epidemic of gun violence in this country,” Washington’s Patty Murray said in her floor speech. The state’s other Senate voice Maria Cantwell pointed to voter approval of “gun show loophole” Initiative 594, which requires criminal background checks to purchase firearms at gun shows and online, as an example for the nation.
Meanwhile in Cal Anderson, a new memorial for those who died in Orlando appeared in chalk markings near the park’s pool and fountain. More events and benefits are being planned including a fundraiser Wednesday at Neumos organized by Jetspace Magazine.
Saturday night, another march is planned:
March for Hope
Saturday, June 18th — 11 PM — Cal Anderson
Join us, friends and family of all people who feel oppressed, this Saturday night, June 18th at 11pm at Cal Anderson Park on Capitol Hill as we take to the streets exactly one week from this tragic event.
Thank you to the 49 stranger's that participated in the living memorial, and the many people that stopped to show… https://t.co/nyE541ov7c
— Jason Jacobs (@JasonbJacobs) June 16, 2016
What is the purpose of this exactly? Everyone in Seattle and Capitol Hill is on the same page about guns and violence. It’s not like they have to change anyone’s mind here. And all the other events going on are not going to change the mind of a few mentally ill people to do the same thing again.
Not everyone is on the same page wrt legal gun ownership.
The question comes down to, if someone is motivated by as much hate as the Orlando shooter was, but he couldn’t legally buy a gun, would he still have found a way to kill people? Either illegally buying a gun or making a homemade explosive device?
It seems too simplistic to say that if guns were not available legally this tragedy wouldn’t have happened.
So you’re saying that we should just keep it easy to obtain weapons like that, then?
Access to guns plays a role, but it sure didn’t help that he was raised to hate. If only we stopped brainwashing kids with these silly fairy tales…
Had the Orlando shooter not been able to easily buy an AR15 assault rifle he wouldn’t have been able to mow down 49 people leaving most no hope of escape. The U.S. has its insanely high rate of mass shootings because we have easy access to automatic weapons. The shooter at SPU didn’t kill 49 people simply because of his choice of weapon. Mentally ill people in America can easily and legally buy these weapons. You have to have been involuntarily committed by court order to a mental health facility for more than 72 hours in order to be ineligible to buy for mental health reasons. That’s a miniscule fraction of the mentally ill population. It’s actually quite rare – court ordered involuntary commitment. That guy talking to himself under a bridge? Likely he has never been involuntarily committed by court order. He too can buy an AR15. The rest of the world thinks we’ve all lost our minds regarding guns, and they’re right.
I was at Cal Anderson Sunday night and watched the procession down Broadway last night. I am so glad to see people rising up in solidarity!
At this point, I am very pessimistic that anything will be done to strengthen our gun laws. If the murder of 20 young children at Newtown was not enough to get Congress to act, then nothing will.
The only glimmer of hope is for the Democrats to get control of both houses of Congress this fall, and even then it’s likely that nothing will change. How is it that the majority to Americans favor an assault-weapon ban, yet our representatives turn a blind eye?