I've lived in Orlando my whole life. I've always had a sense of pride for my city even if our NBA team is slacking a season. Outsiders seem to think "Orlando" is synonymous with "Disney World." What people don’t realize is that we are so much more than that. That’s what makes Orlando, Florida such a chimerical destination in this world.
You wake up in the morning. What is there to do today? You can head over to Lake Eola and visit the swans on your walk and gaze at the view of the beautiful buildings by this body of water. Heading over to the Butler Chain of Lakes and finding yourself tubing or water skiing through the warm waters that make the typical, humidity bearable is always an option. Disney’s magical theme parks are available 365 days a year and permeated with charm, but going to Disney Springs and spending the night making unnecessary purchases and having an incredible selection of dining is an Orlando favorite if you’re feeling like a tourist. Orlando’s nightlife is centralized in Downtown Orlando where you’ll find clubs and bars people celebrate at when our new found love for soccer, Orlando City, wins a game. I’m so lucky to have lived in such an amazing city for the past 18 years, but on Saturday, June 11, the rest of the world began to think differently.
The club, Pulse, was attacked by an intruder. Everyone is welcome to share the love and happiness in this club, but this person didn’t have these intentions. Because of this person, 49 people died. Because of this person, 49 people couldn’t live another day of their life. Because of this person, Orlando became home to the “largest massacre in US history.”
Waking up the next morning and seeing other countries and cities thousands of miles away tweet the hashtag, #PrayForOrlando, became an odd site. This had been done previously with Paris when the bombs attacked the city of love, but now that people were praying for my home, my Orlando, I couldn’t comprehend this tragedy. I frantically realized that people I knew could have been there that night. The club was twenty minutes away from my house. All of my LGBT friends had made Pulse their sanctuary, their safe space, and someone came along and decided to create a catastrophe from all of this. Well, 49 people were killed and 53 injured in our Orlando. When someone attacks our home, we speak out. Lines at blood banks began to fill up, volunteers supplied water and snacks for those in the lines, and hand in hand, candles were lit, and Orlando began to fight for our survivors and remember those who weren’t so lucky.
This tragedy began to create a place for political candidates to advance their campaign and political parties to justify their platform for gun laws, but for us, here in Orlando, this tragedy gave us a wake-up call. Our people were attacked. Even if we did not know these people, we all lived in the beautiful Orlando together. This is our home. We will never forget this day, and we will wave our rainbow flags high in the air remembering those 49 victims hoping that no city has to go through this again.
