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After Orlando Shooting, An Outpouring of Love in South Florida

Spontaneous memorials and community vigils proliferated across South Florida in the aftermath of a shooting that killed 50 and left 52 wounded at a gay nightclub in Orlando early Sunday morning.

"We cannot allow that kind of hatred to continue in our society," said Wilton Manors mayor Gary Resnick  addressing a crowd at the Pride Center there. "Many of us have friends and family members that live in Orlando; we may have friends that were in Pulse last night."

"The shooter could have come anywhere in Florida," he added. "He could have made it down to Wilton Manors and been in one of our bars last night. The LGBT community is now a hard target."

Carl Hildebrand held a candle protected by a paper cup and a sign that read "Orlando Strong."

“I was in Orlando this weekend and I think that’s another reason I’m here," Hildebrand said. "It could have been me."

Credit Spencer Parts / WLRN
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WLRN
Wilfredo Ruiz, communications director for the Florida Council on American-Islamic Relations, greets another vigil attendee in Wilton Manor Sunday.

"This act does not belong to our religion," Wilfredo Ruiz, a spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic relations, told the crowd. The suspect in the shooting, Omar Mateen, was an American citizen who attended a mosque in Fort Pierce and who, authorities say, pledged allegiance to the Islamic State in a 911 call before his attack.

"This vile terrorist criminal does not represent us," Ruiz continued. "It is Mohammed Ali who represents us," he said, alluding to the late boxer known for his activism against the Vietnam War.

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"These terrible acts do not belong to our religion," said Wilfredo Ruiz, a spokesmen for the Council on American Islamic Relations in Florida.

In Miami Beach, dancers from the Palace, a fixture of gay nightlife in South Beach known for its weekend drag shows, released a bouquet of 50 balloons to commemorate each of the victims killed in Sunday’s shooting.

“We want to push these balloons up to heaven, and show  them that we love them,” said Latavia Goldson, a dancer who performs under the moniker Fantasia Royale.”

At Goldson’s bidding, a collective whoop erupted from the crowd on Ocean Drive before the balloons were let go. “Let’s make some noise and show Orlando how much we love them,” she said.

A few blocks away, Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine was among those to donate blood at a mobile center set up outside before a vigil at Soundscape park. 

  A video posted by Wilson Sayre (@wilsosay) on Jun 12, 2016 at 5:26pm PDT

A video posted by WLRN's Wilson Sayre shows a candlelit rendition of John Lennon's 'Imagine' that closed the vigil.
 

 
Miami Beach Police Chief Daniel Oates reminded the crowd of our “collective obligation” to vigilance. "Miami Beach and American society is a world of soft targets," he said. 

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Miami Beach Police Chief Daniel Oates called Miami Beach and American society as a whole a "world of soft targets."

"So the number one level of protection in our society is our citizens and their observations. But we can't yield to terrorists and change the way we live." Chief Oates served in the same role in Aurora, Colorado in 2012, when a shooter’s rampage suburban movie theater killed 12 and left 70 people injured. "Somehow, somewhere, there were indicators," he said. "But we gotta know. If we don't know, we can't act."

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Miami Beach Chief of Police Daniel Oates: "If we don't know, we can't act."

At the Baitul Naseer Mosque in Hallandale Beach, Members of the Amadiyyah Muslim Community  re-purposed an annual feast in celebration of the holy month of Ramadan to condemn the violence and preach love and unity alongside religious leaders from across South Florida. “We have one message to give, regardless of who you are” said Reverend Mark R. Tonnesen of St Andrew’s Lutheran Church in Homestead.

All religions teach “Love of creation,” Tonnesen said, before reading from the Qu’ran, the Torah, and the New Testament one after another. “Religion isn’t violent, but people are violent, “ he said.

Blood Drives across South Florida

In response to the mass shootings, OneBlood dispatched several mobile blood drives throughout South Florida, including Miami Beach, Downtown Miami and Hialeah.

And shortly after what news outlets are calling the worst mass shooting in America, the donors came pouring in.

Credit Amanda Rabines / WLRN
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South Floridians stood in line to donate blood for the victims of the mass shooting in Orlando.

Bob Burns, a sexton at Trinity Church, was one of them. He wasn’t planning on donating blood that morning, but Burns says it’s the least he could do after hearing the news.

 

“I saw all the killings and I was really devastated by it,” Burns said. “When I got the alarm off my phone I said I got to help out.”

 

More than 50 people were injured and 50 were killed inside the gay nightclub in Orlando overnight.

 

Nieves Losa, regional director for OneBlood, says one donation can help save up to four different lives.

 

“It’s so important that our blood supply be at a safe level at all times, to have needed amounts when things like this happen,” Losa said.

OneBlood is asking civilians to roll up their sleeves and donate blood and platelets over the next few days, but a current Food and Drug Administration law may prevent that.

 

According to the FDA, gay and bisexual men who have been sexually active in the last year are banned to donate blood.

 

OneBlood posted on Facebook stating it will follow all current policy and laws.

Political figure Brian Sims is an LGBTQA advocate. He pleaded on social media for heterosexuals to go out and do what gay men cannot.

OneBlood is urging people to donate blood over the next few days. Call to inquire for an appointment here: 1-888-936-6283.

 

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