U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette Leads House Resolution Honoring Club Q Victims

U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO) took steps on Wednesday, December 14 to honor the victims of the deadly attack at the Club Q nightclub in Colorado Springs.

DeGette introduced a resolution in the U.S. House condemning the attack on the popular LGBTQ club and calling for an end to the hate-filled rhetoric that’s led to a sharp increase in violent threats targeting the LGBTQ community nationwide.

“Let us be clear: no one in this country should have to live in constant fear of being attacked for who they are or who they love,” the representative says. “No one should have to experience the unimaginable pain and suffering that so many in our community are now feeling in the wake of this senseless attack at Club Q.”

Five people died and at least 22 more were injured when a shooter armed with a semiautomatic assault weapon and high-capacity magazine opened fire inside the club on November 19.

The resolution honoring those killed in the attack and condemning a recent rise in violence targeting members of the LGBTQ community was signed by 115 members of the House, including all four Democratic members of Colorado’s Congressional delegation and over 100 members of the  Congressional LGBTQ+ Equality Caucus.

“On the eve of Transgender Day of Remembrance, the LGBTQ+ community was once again devastated by the horrific attack at Club Q,” says U.S. Rep. David Cicilline (D-RI), who serves as chair of the Congressional LGBTQ+ Equality Caucus. “After the mass shooting at Pulse Nightclub, we prayed that something like this would never happen again—that our safe spaces wouldn’t be violated by such hate and violence.

“These horrifying attacks do not happen in a vacuum. Over the last few years, we have seen an alarming increase in hateful and violent rhetoric against the LGBTQ+ community and those who support us. Words and actions have consequences, and two weeks ago, the Department of Homeland Security raised concerns about increased threats to our community by extremists inspired by the Club Q attack. We must put an end to this cycle of hate and violence.

“In honoring the memories of the victims at Club Q, we must not only condemn the acts of violence that took their lives but also condemn the increasing threats our community is facing. My thoughts are with the loved ones of all those who were so brutally murdered, those who were injured, and every single person impacted by this horrific act of bigotry. I thank Rep. DeGette for her leadership in introducing this resolution and for her steadfast support for the LGBTQ+ community.”

In introducing the resolution, DeGette, who is also the lead sponsor of legislation to ban high-capacity gun magazines nationwide, urged her colleagues to act on the gun-safety measure in the wake of last month’s shooting.

“The hate-filled rhetoric that’s fueling this rise in violent attacks against the LGBTQ+ community has no place in our society, and neither should the weapons of war being used to carry these awful attacks out,” DeGette says in remarks she submitted for the record. “At some point, we, as a society, have to come together and say ‘enough is enough.’”

The resolution introduced Wednesday comes just days after Homeland Security officials issued a nationwide alert warning of a “persistent and lethal threat” to members of the LGBTQ community from violent extremists in the United States. And it specifically cites the recent rise in, and increasingly violent nature of, threats targeting the LGBTQ+ community.

The resolution also cites the ongoing efforts of extreme anti-LGBTQ politicians to demonize the LGBTQ+ community, their efforts to spread misinformation online, and the increased targeting of drag events across the country–such as the one that was scheduled to take place at Club Q on the same day of the massacre.

“The toxic combination of hate and access to guns can and has led to deadly results,” the resolution states. “All LGBTQ+ people deserve to live their lives openly without fear of hate and violence; and (the U.S. House of Representatives) stands in solidarity with the LGBTQ+ community in Colorado Springs and around the country.”

The resolution has been endorsed by several organizations including One Colorado, the National Center for Transgender Equality, the Human Rights Campaign, PFLAG National, the National LGBTQ Task Force Action Fund, Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, March for Our Lives, and Colorado Ceasefire.

Photo Courtesy of Congresswoman Diana DeGette Facebook Page