Noticias

Before unleashing unwelcomed statements like Senator Desireè Masi, you need to understand why that what has been perpetrated in a popular nightspot among the LGBT community is no coincidence.

 
It is not another shooting of the many who have sadly shaken the US in the last times. Although they were all tragic, this particular one is not a terrorist act. It is a hate crime perpetrated by a person identified with ISIS - even though this is not yet entirely clarified whether there was a real connection between the attacker and the organization- and openly homophobic. These two facts are no coincidence: To identify with an organization that among other inhumane acts is the systematic execution of gay people, based on the doctrines of Islam, and the clear hostility against the LGBTI community of the person who perpetrated this attack.

 
But it is also no coincidence the denial of all logic when trying to ignore the link between the intolerant exacerbation and the targeted attack on our communities. Because to admit it is to also admit the impact of hate speech held by representatives of all faiths, not only resisted by the general public, but other revered as social trainers, such as catholics and evangelicals. It is impossible to disassociate homophobia from religious discourse.

 
Because while ISIS throw people from buildings, here Christian conservatives make common cause in the systematic denial of rights, or impunity in murders of trans women in Paraguay. Because in Russia people are jailed under propaganda terms because of expressing their affections, here the battle is on every corner just for holding hands.

 
Because accepting this fact condemns the almighty priests and pastors who every Sunday from their pulpits justify, naturalize and encourage conservative revanchism. The same conservative revanchism which many politicians employ for their own benefits. It's no coincidence.

 
There are Muslims and Christians who do not share the homophobic connotations of their holy scriptures, nobody denies this fact. That is not fair in the narrative struggle to put everybody in the same bag: the xenophobic discourse of some right and some left which claims to defend human rights here but shakes hands with the Ayatollah in Iran. But it is also unfair to postpone an urgent discussion about the scope of discrimination and their causes. We must not generalize or remain silent. It’s no coincidence.

 

The historic moment in which we live requires us, more than ever, to take to the streets. It shows us why we must stand in solidarity with our peers in the LGBT communities across the region through initiatives like GayLatino. This is why we need demonstrations of pride, hoisting rainbows flags of visibility towards those who stubbornly deny reality. This is why our resistance will be one vindicating love and joy without failing to point injustices.

 

In this hour of mourning, the reason of our responses and our commitment to the future is neither a coincidence. It is the best tribute to the victims.