Long Beach community members gathered Sunday evening at Harvey Milk Park to honor the lives lost in the Orlando shooting at Pulse nightclub, an LGBT-focused venue, that morning.
Emotions ran high for residents who brought candles, flowers and held others while hoisting rainbow flags to mourn the loss of 49 individuals.
“It’s a nice moment to see the community come together, [I’m] really proud of them but most importantly it’s just important for us to support what’s happening in Orlando and support all of our brother’s and sisters there,” said Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia.
The vigil included on-site counseling provided by the LGBTQ Center of Long Beach.
“Mental health resources and crisis counseling is vital to folks who have experienced trauma and who need an outlet and we are absolutely proud to offer that to our community,” said LGBTQ Executive Director, Porter Gilberg, “The outpouring of support tonight is incredible.”
Tragedy struck Orlando when a gunman opened fire around 2 a.m. in Pulse, which was hosting a Latin-themed dance night with more than 300 people in attendance.
The attack resulted in the death of 49 people and 53 injuries and is the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history, according to a statement made by President Barack Obama.
Some members of the Long Beach community marched in solidarity from Bixby Park to the vigil while raising rainbow flags.
The march was organized on Facebook by 175TheMovie, an upcoming indie film about the struggles of the LGBTQ community in Germany during WWII.
“Today we walk for ourselves and we walk for all those people who were killed.” said Vachelle Poetoehena, a Long Beach resident who attended the vigil. “We’ll cry and we’ll scream but we are stronger than hate,”
Mayor Robert Garcia addresses the crowd.
The month of June is gay pride month, with pride festivals being held across the world.
“Long Beach has a large LGBT community and so it’s important that we show our support to [Orlando,]” said Garcia who attended the vigil with his partner.
Los Angeles was hosting its annual Pride Festival on the same weekend as the shooting. Long Beach held a festival the weekend before.
On the same morning as the Orlando shooting, James Wesley Howell was arrested after being found with armed with guns, ammunition and explosives in his car while on his way to the L.A. Pride in Santa Monica
To ensure the safety of Long Beach residents, the Long Beach Police Department amped up safety around gay clubs and Muslim mosques in Long Beach, according to Long Beach officials.
“We have been very present throughout this whole event just to ensure everyone’s safety,” said Commander Randy Allen, Port Police division, “It definitely means we need to be very vigilant we need to ensure that all of us are paying attention…We have heightened all our security in all those positions.”
For those who still feel affected by the incident, crisis counseling is available at the Long Beach LGBTQ Center.