On Sunday, June 12 around two a.m., 29-year-old Omar Mateen brought an assault rifle and pistol into Pulse, a gay bar and nightclub in Orlando, Florida and killed 49 people and injured 53 others. This is the worst mass shooting in United States history, and it has brought a lot of questions to the surface. This was an attack on the LGBTQ+ community, and it has caused controversy in many areas. However, I think we’re overlooking a major aspect of what needs to be changed in our country.

While on the phone with the police, Mateen pledged allegiance to ISIS, and this has caused many Americans to feel even more unsafe about the presence of ISIS and its members in our country. It has brought out more hate and intolerance for the Muslim community. However, Mateen also pledged allegiance to Hezbollah and al-Qaeda and expressed solidarity with the Boston bombers. Hezbollah is a group fighting against ISIS, so it is clear to me that this man was a little confused. This is NOT a Muslim problem, this is NOT an immigration problem, this is NOT a “radical Islam” problem. This is an American problem. It is one of homophobia and hatred. It is one of intolerance and a lack of acceptance. This crime was committed because of hatred and fear of difference. So why have we let more hatred and fear dictate the conversation? Why have we turned to blaming Muslims and Islam and immigration? Why are we giving in to Islamophobia and xenophobia? These are the same feelings that caused this hate crime. We cannot divide ourselves. We need to be united now more than ever.

One of the most prevalent discussions surrounding this issue is gun control. I do agree that we need tighter restrictions on weapons, especially when it comes to criminals and people with certain psychological disabilities. I agree that the process to own a gun needs some work because there is no reason that a civilian needs an AK47 or a Sig Sauer MCX, which was used in this massacre. Those kinds of weapons should be held only by government officials and used only in case of emergencies or in war zones. I agree that our gun control policies need revision, but why is our conversation not focused on homophobia?

Yes, an assault rifle was used to murder 49 innocent people, but shouldn’t we be talking about the victims and the fact that they were killed because of their sexual orientation? Shouldn’t we be addressing the hate, fear and ignorance the LGBTQ+ community has to deal with every day? Why have we attempted to address the issue of guns but not the issue of homophobia? They are both important factors in this case, but I think that homophobia needs to be discussed more this time. In my opinion, if homophobia did not exist, this massacre likely would not have occurred. We need to start talking about homophobia and understanding that it’s not okay. We need to start educating people about sexual orientation and differences in general. We need to understand and accept that every single person on this planet is different from everyone else, and that is perfectly okay. There is no reason to discriminate against a group of people for any reason, and we need to start teaching that to our children.

And we need to address Islamophobia. The fact that an American-born man did this seems irrelevant to some people because his parents emigrated from Afghanistan almost 30 years ago. Somehow, people still blame Muslims and the religion of Islam for this attack. Why? Omar Mateen was an American. He was born in New York. He is not an immigrant. And even if he were an immigrant or Muslim, why should that matter? He was an individual. We need to stop generalizing the Muslim population as a group of terrorists. We need to stop discriminating against Islam because we don’t understand it. We need to stop punishing all for the actions of a few. That is not how this works. That is not the definition of a free country. And it’s disgusting.

I don’t want my children to grow up in a hateful, fearful country where people are afraid to be who they are. I don’t want my children to grow up thinking that they need to be like everyone else to avoid danger and persecution. I have worked with children almost every day for the past six years and I plan on always having a career working with children and adolescents. I don’t want these children to grow up surrounded by hate, intolerance and fear. How am I supposed to foster an environment of love, respect, and acceptance in a country driven by the opposite? I want these children to learn to understand and respect all kinds of people. I want these children to know that they are special because of who they are. I want these children to be safe from harm and to know that they are loved. How can I do that when they are constantly hearing about things like the Orlando massacre? How can I teach them to be the opposite of the shooter? How can they learn to love and respect every individual despite all differences?

We need to urge our government officials to do something about the ease with which people can gain access to weapons. We need to stop discriminating against other people simply because they are different. We need to start coming together to stop the hate and intolerance that seem to dominate our daily lives. We need to stop tearing each other down to preserve our own egos. We need to start trying to understand one another. We need to stop saying “I told you so” and trusting leaders who refuse to change anything. We need to start creating a culture of love, acceptance, understanding and individuality. It’s time to start thinking about the future of our country. It’s time to start making real changes. It’s time to start loving each other. If we don’t, I’m afraid to see where we might end up next time.