(Image: Mariah Joyce for CHS)
UPDATE: Thousands filled Cal Anderson Park Sunday night to remember those killed in Orlando in the deadly shooting at a gay nightclub. A tear-filled count to 50 — and above — to remember the slain ended the evening. “47… 48… 49…”
Earlier in the night, Ed Murray, Seattle’s first openly gay mayor, addressed the crowd and struck a defiant tone. “We will, as we have in the past, face this fear,” Murray said. “We will not be intimidated.”
“I can say unequivocally this: There are seven million Washington hearts in Orlando tonight,” Governor Jay Inslee said.
“Hatred is a common virus, it affects us all.”
The candlelight vigil for victims of #OrlandoNightclubShooting brought hundreds to Cal Anderson Park in #Seattle pic.twitter.com/rWdLdE1Ssu
— Alex Garland (@AGarlandPhoto) June 13, 2016
(Image: Mariah Joyce for CHS)
Hundreds of candles were joined by hundreds and hundreds more flashing phone lights as the dead were remembered.
In the crowd, people told CHS they heard about the vigil through social media and from community centers like Broadway’s All Pilgrims Church. One woman told CHS she just knew there would be a gathering on Capitol Hill. “This is what pride looks like,” Barbara Elza said with a rainbow flag fastened like a cape around her neck. “This is how strong we are.”
Thanks to Dave Reimer for the picture
The Seattle Men’s Chorus and Seattle Women’s Chorus lead the crowd in song at one point joining a bagpiper across the park for Amazing Grace. A somber medley featuring What a Wonderful World helped bring the vigil to an end. A giant Pride flag was unfurled across the crowd as the vigil drew to a close.
Afterwards, candles and signs from the vigil decorated a stone wall on the park’s southern edge in memorial.
We’ll have more coverage from the vigil and images from around Cal Anderson. Please send us your pictures or video from the vigil for us to share.
UPDATE: The City of Seattle is streaming the vigil
Community groups are organizing a candlelight vigil in Cal Anderson Park Sunday night after a terrible shooting at an Orlando, Florida nightclub killed at least 50 people:
A gunman carrying a handgun and an assault-style weapon opened fire at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Fla., early Sunday, killing at least 50 people and wounding at least 53 others. It is the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history. The death toll far exceeds initial estimates. Orlando Police Chief John Mina initially said “around 20” people succumbed to gunshot wounds inside the Pulse Orlando nightclub, but later said police found far more victims once they gained full access to the scene. He said the suspected gunman is also dead.
50 people are dead in the worst mass shooting in U.S. history. Here's what we know: https://t.co/V8TygobC0j
— NPR (@NPR) June 12, 2016
The vigil is slated to begin at 8 PM. The Pride Foundation announced the vigil Sunday morning as Seattle awoke to news of the horrific events in Florida. UPDATE: Representatives from the Sisters of the Mother House of Washington say they will be on hand at the park starting at 6 PM “for those who feel the need to arrive early and be around community.”
Governor Jay Inslee and Mayor Ed Murray are slated to attend. They will be joined by officials including State Senator Jamie Pedersen, community leader Sarah Davis, Luis Fernando Ramirez of Entre Hermanos, Monisha Harrell of Equal Rights Washington Michael Ramos of Church Council of Greater Seattle, and Connie Burk of The NW Network, according to a City of Seattle announcement.
