The Royal City is standing in solidarity with victims of the mass shooting in Orlando, Fla.
City officials have made arrangements for the rainbow-coloured lights to once again light up Anvil Centre.
“There were so many people across our community that were just feeling in a dark place yesterday after hearing the terrible, tragic news,” Mayor Jonathan Cote said at Monday night’s council meeting. “It was really wonderful for the community to come together, to be able to talk, to be able to hug, to be able to feel connected.”
Early Sunday morning, Omar Mateen entered a LGBTQ nightclub in Orlando, Fla. with an assault rifle and a handgun, killing 49 people and injuring more than 50.
Cote said it’s important that the community show its solidarity with the LGBTQ community. While he feels society has taken many steps forward for human rights and gay and lesbian rights over the years, Cote said incidents like the Orlando shooting feel like taking a step backwards.
“We need to continue the fight,” he said.
Council had a moment of silence at its Monday night meeting, not only to mourn the losses and tragedies families are experiencing in Florida, but to stand in solidarity with everyone in the LGBTQ community.
Coun. Patrick Johnstone thanked New West Pride for organizing a vigil at the rainbow crosswalk.
“For many of us in New West, Pride is a celebration we have, a celebration of inclusivity and acceptance, but we forget sometimes the battle for acceptance isn’t over,” he said. “We are painfully reminded sometimes of the battle isn’t over and it won’t be over till we get past the kind of hate we saw in Orlando.”
Coun. Jaimie McEvoy said the shooting has had a profound effect on people in New Westminster. He urges the public to attend the New West Pride festival in August to show support and solidarity with the LGBTQ community.
Coun. Chuck Puchmayr said “it boggles the mind” that somebody who has been identified as a risk by the FBI and has been flagged by the FBI is still permitted to buy a “ridiculous weapon that can only be used for mass assault” in a gun store.
