At least five people died this Saturday night and 18 were injured after an intense shooting at a bar in the western US state of Colorado frequented by LGBT people. According to the police report, there’s a suspect in custody.
The shooting occurred in the city of Colorado Springs after a year in which ‘anti-gay’ rhetoric has grown among extremists, according to local authorities.
“There has been a shooting tonight at a local bar. We received an early call at around 11.57pm that there was a shooting going on at a pub known as ‘Q circle‘” said Colorado Springs Police spokeswoman Lt. Pamela Castro.
“There are 18 wounded and five dead,” confirmed Castro, who also anticipated that “there’s a suspect in custody“.
“We believe the person arrested is the one who fired the shots, who was also injured and treated by doctors at a hospital,” the lieutenant said.
He added that it’s still unclear whether he was shot by police officers who came to the scene, or by FBI agents, who were on site to help the case.
The LGTB pub statement
In turn, and through a statement, the leaders of Club Q said they feel “devastated by the senseless attack against our LGBT community”.
“We appreciate the quick reactions from the heroic customers who subdued the gunman and put an end to this hate attack,” they wrote via social media.
Homophobic context in the United States
The hate behind the shooting brought to mind the 2016 massacre at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida that killed 49 people.
In June this year, 31 members of the neo-Nazi group “Patriot Front” were arrested and charged with conspiracy to riot during a Pride.
Experts have warned that extremist groups could see “anti-gay” rhetoric as a call to action.
Last month, a fundamentalist pastor from Idaho told his congregation that the government should execute gay, lesbian and transgender people, aligning with similar sermons from a fundamentalist pastor from Texas.
With information from Telam
Source: Clarin
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.