BANGOR, Maine — Mainers gathered Monday evening in at least half a dozen locations to conduct vigils in support of the 49 people who died and the 53 who were injured early Sunday morning at Pulse, a popular gay bar and dance club in Orlando, Florida.
In Bangor, a candlelight vigil on the front steps of City Hall drew several hundred people of all ages and orientations. The mood was somber as they came together in solidarity and to comfort one another. Leaders of the area LGBT community and elected officials spoke of the need to unite in the face of hatred.
Bangor Mayor Sean Faircloth was among them.
“I’m going to say something about some of the controversial issues that are swirling around this horror and that is only this: Whether you are gay or straight, or Democrat or Republican, or you consider yourself a proud advocate of gun rights or an advocate of gun control, please, please listen to each other,” Faircloth said.
“Please take the temperature down and care for each other. We need to be one community that all cares together and actually wants to unite to heal. Let us do that. Let us do that together,” he said.
Senior Pastor Mark Doty of the Hammond Street Congregational Church, an EqualityMaine board member, said that on Friday he bought plane tickets to a gay men’s gathering next month in Orlando. Then he learned of the shootings there.
“My first thought, not surprisingly, was, ‘That could have been me.’ My next thought, of course, was of the 100 victims and their families.”
Doty called for a change in the climate of gun violence.
“President Obama has said that we have set a pattern now of mass shootings in this country that has no parallel anywhere else in the world,” Doty said. “Even as we gather this evening to grieve and remember, I have to ask, how long will this madness continue? How many candlelight vigils will we have to hold across the United States before the horrific carnage ceases?”
Brewer Mayor Beverly Uhlenhake, the Peace & Justice Center of Eastern Maine, the Health Equity Alliance and the choral group Divisi also were expected to participate in the Bangor event on Monday night.
Similar vigils for the Orlando victims were set for Portland, Auburn, Bar Harbor, Ellsworth and Machias, according to EqualityMaine, a leading advocate for LGBT Mainers.
Alex Patel, president of the Bridge Alliance, said the group was in the midst of completing plans for Bangor Pride 2016, set for June 21-26, when word of the Orlando nightclub shootings began to spread.
“So when we saw the news that began unfolding yesterday morning, we got in touch with one another and started to have conversations about what the community might need,” Patel said. “We’re very aware that people are experiencing grief over the loss of lives but also a loss of the sense of safety that we have built.
“There’s been a lot of momentum in the LGBT civil rights movement, especially in the last decade, so to have something like this happen has really kind of shaken people’s confidence. We as a community are just very connected,” Patel said.
With regard to security at the vigil and Bangor Pride events scheduled for next week, Patel has been assured that Bangor police will have a visible presence. The department’s Facebook page also had a post to that effect.
On Monday, organizations that support Maine’s LGBT community offered statements on the attack:
“We were shocked and horrified by the events in Orlando this weekend. This was an act of terror and of hate that specifically targeted LGBT people,” EqualityMaine Executive Director Matt Moonen said. “Our hearts are with the victims, their families and with those still fighting for their lives. Our community is hurting, and the vigils across the state tonight will enable us to come together to mourn those lost in Orlando.”
Michelle Patrick, co-chair of Pride Portland, said, “Pride Portland is saddened and stunned by this act of terrorism. We will continue to follow our mission statement, honoring our history and bringing community together. This tragedy is a reminder that we need to continue to do both. We will continue with our planned activities. We encourage the community to participate, honor and celebrate for those who no longer can.”
Kenney Miller, executive director of the Health Equity Alliance, also issued a statement Monday:
” LGBTQ+ Pride Month is a time to celebrate diversity but instead we find ourselves mourning the continued intransigence of hatred, intolerance and fear,” Miller said.
“The tragedy in Orlando strikes to the heart. Not just the heart of the LGBTQ+ community but all people who struggle against bigotry and fight against injustice,” Miller said. “Our hearts and thoughts go out to the wounded, the lost, the grieving and to the entire community.”