WHEN: Monday, June 12, 2017, 7-9 P.M.
WHAT: Pulse Memorial Rally Presented by Gays Against Guns
WHERE: Stonewall National Monument
CONTACT: Cathy Marino-Thomas (516) 302-5198; Terry Roethlein: (347) 449-2881
#HonorThemWithAction #GaysAgainstGuns
www.gaysagainstguns.net

GAYS AGAINST GUNS AND NYC LGBTQ NIGHTLIFE COMMUNITY PRESENT MEMORIAL RALLY TO HONOR 49 PULSE NIGHTCLUB VICTIMS AND DEMAND GUN CONTROL,
SAFE SPACES

NEW YORK, NY (June 8, 2017)—On Monday, June 12, 2017, Gays Against Guns (G.A.G.) and partnering LGBTQ nightclubs are hosting a public event to mark the one-year anniversary of the Orlando Pulse Nightclub massacre, outside the Stonewall National Monument in New York City, from 7-9 p.m. The event memorializes the 49 victims, demands revisions to flawed gun laws, and demands that LGBTQ spaces remain safe from hate crimes and gun violence.

The Pulse Memorial Rally features appearances by Pulse survivor Keinon Carter; Lavender Light Gospel Choir; youth a capella group Passing Notes ; singer Aaron Paul; spoken work performers Miss Teary and Gia Manmade; 49 “Human Beings” memorializing the victims; and additional special guests to be announced. Patrons of over 20 partnering LGBTQ bars and clubs including the Cubbyhole, Henrietta Hudson, Julius, Phoenix, and Stonewall, dressed in black, will walk silently in groups to meet outside Stonewall Inn for a solemn yet ultimately celebratory event. The public is invited to meet up at partnering bars throughout New York City, including 9th Ave Saloon, Rise, Mickey Spillane’s, Marie’s Crisis, Monster, Hangar, Boxers, Uncle Charlie’s, Metropolitan, and others afterward for drink specials and community-building.

“The attack at Pulse in June 2016 and the attack on the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina one year earlier are painful reminders that our country has a terrible problem with gun violence against minority communities,” said GAG activist Nelson Bernardo Caraballo. “The fact that our current government is actively seeking to pass even more dangerous gun laws makes it all the more urgent that we fight for gun control and protection in our community spaces,” he said.

G.A.G. was formed by local LGBTQ activists after the Pulse massacre to insure that the community’s voice be heard through direct action against flawed gun legislation, and to stand up against gun violence imposed upon all marginalized communities.

“There’s not a week that goes by where I don’t grieve losing a safer space for LGBTQ+ people, especially LGBTQ+ people of color, here in Orlando,” said David Thomas Moran of GAG Orlando. “Today is not just a day of remembrance but also a call to action, to change our gun safety laws, to protect marginalized communities most targeted by gun violence.”

In one year, G.A.G. has established six active chapters throughout the country and received national and international attention for mounting highly visible protests, street theater, and media campaigns against NRA-linked politicians and companies like BlackRock, Reebok, FedEx, Wyndham, and Hertz.

Gays Against Guns NY is an inclusive direct action group of LGBTQ people and their allies committed to nonviolently breaking the gun industry’s chain of death—investors, manufacturers, the NRA, and politicians who block strong gun laws. We are New York-based but work with GAG chapters in other cities to ensure safety for all individuals, particularly vulnerable communities such as people of color, women, people who struggle with mental health issues, LGBTQ people, and religious minorities.