The Associated Press reports that late last night, a gunman killed 5 and wounded 18 patrons at the gay and lesbian Club Q nightclub in Colorado Springs, CO, marking the sixth mass killing by gunfire just this month. Republican-led culture wars intensified during the mid-term elections, prompting attacks on the LGBTQ community. It's not a coincidence that Colorado Springs is represented in Congress by Fanatic far-right gun humper Lauren Boebert, who has a record of hate speech (here, here, and here), is perhaps Colorado's most notable bigot in that regard. From the AP report:
"Authorities received a report of a shooting at Club Q at 11:57 p.m. and responded within minutes, said Lt. Pamela Castro of the Colorado Springs Police Department.
The violence is the sixth mass killing this month and comes in a year when the nation was shaken by the deaths of 21 in a school shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
Castro had few details beyond the number of dead and wounded. She said the suspect was injured but didn’t know how and that the FBI was on the scene and assisting. [snip]
The latest incident occurred as anti-gay rhetoric has intensified by extremists. In a statement, Club Q termed the shooting a hate attack.
'Club Q is devastated by the senseless attack on our community,' the club posted on its Facebook page. It said its prayers were with victims and families, adding: 'We thank the quick reactions of heroic customers that subdued the gunman and ended this hate attack.'
Club Q is a gay and lesbian nightclub that features a 'Drag Diva Drag Show' on Saturdays, according to its website." (our emphasis)
The worst mass shooting of LGBTQ people was in June, 2016, at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, FL, where a gunman killed 49 and wounded 53. Earlier this year, far-right extremists, often led by the fascist "Proud Boys" street thugs, attacked Pride celebrations around the country.
UPDATE: Police have identified the gunman as 22 year-old Anderson Aldrich, who apparently was arrested last year for threatening his mother with a homemade bomb and multiple weapons. Just the kind of person whose "second amendment rights" the National Rifle Rampage Association is protecting.
