Several American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) attorneys took to Twitter to blame the “Christian Right” for Sunday’s deadly terrorist attack at a nightclub in Orlando, Fla., which left 50 dead and 53 injured.
Chase Strangio, a staff attorney with the ACLU’s LGBT and AIDS Project, claimed the social and political environment cultivated by Christian conservatives in recent months was to blame for the shooting at Pulse, a nightclub popular with Orlando’s LGBT community.
The Christian Right has introduced 200 anti-LGBT bills in the last six months and people blaming Islam for this. No. #PulseNightclub
— Chase Strangio (@chasestrangio) June 12, 2016
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Strangio also called for solidarity between American Muslims and LGBT communities, arguing both are maligned and oppressed by the religious right.
Federal law enforcement officials have identified Omar Mateen, of Port St. Lucie, Fla., as the alleged shooter. Mateen’s father told NBC News his son harbored anti-gay sentiments and said his son gave voice to those feelings recently during a trip to Miami, where he saw two men kissing.
She further characterized expressions of solidarity as “useless,” as many of the victims could be people of color, who she contends are regularly stigmatized by Republican legislators. Little demographic data is currently available about the victims, as many have not yet been identified.
The ACLU did not respond to The Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
This report, by Kevin Daley, was cross-posted by arrangement with the Daily Caller News Foundation.
