Pulse: One Year Later

We are still Orlando United.

For me, viewing televised reports of mass murders and terror attacks had become, dare I say, commonplace. Yes, a detached sadness accompanied watching those tragedies, but those types of events happened in other cities. Disasters like that could never happen in my hometown. But on June 12, 2016, that all changed when forty-nine victims were brutally murdered, the gunman killed, and scores more injured at Pulse, an LGBTQ nightclub five minutes from downtown Orlando and roughly 15 minutes from my home. Terror happened practically in my backyard.

The profound loss of life and heart-rending grief of the Pulse massacre have become an indelible part of our city’s history. In some ways, Orlando is a big city. After all, it’s home to state of the art theme parks, world class resorts, and a hospitality industry that is second only to Las Vegas in revenue. And in other ways, compared to other major American metropolitan areas, Orlando is very much a sprawling small southern town with a rural mentality. (Read into that what you will.)

So to have an incident of this nature happen here, shook me to my core. But Orlando’s united response of love and support for the victims’ families, loved ones, and the LGBTQ and Latino communities have also become a part of the fabric of central Florida.