Annual Report 2016 Supporting Vermont’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and Allied Communities
June 2015 to June 2016: Two events occur within this timeframe that will shape LGBTQ lives forever. These events instantly transmit why, more than ever, we must stand together and with our allies to support, strengthen, and protect who we are and how we live. June 26, 2015: In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court rules that states must license marriages between people of the same sex and recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states. We rejoice. We tie the knot. We experience the weight of discrimination and oppression lifting from our hearts. We dance in the streets, in our homes—and in “safe” gathering places like Pulse nightclub in Orlando. June 12, 2016: A young man kills 49 people and wounds 53 others inside Pulse—the deadliest mass shooting by a single gunman and the deadliest incident of violence against LGBTQA people in U.S. history. We mourn the losses. We rage against the misunderstanding, hate, and violence directed at our community both on that night and others throughout the past. And we know that these feelings will persist into the future. These two events make unmistakably real the need for the LGBTQA community to join together in mutual support—emotionally, spiritually, and politically.
On June 13th, 2016, Vermonters gathered for a vigil in the wake of the shooting at Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando. The vigil, organized by the Pride Center of Vermont, brought more than 1,000 people together to honor the lives of the victims, most of whom were young, LGBTQA, and Latinx. Photo: Karen Pike
No less importantly, the events dramatically illustrate why we must continue to provide financial support for the causes and organizations that bring us closer to equality. We cannot rest. Now, more than ever we must be active defenders of the equality and hate-free lives we are fighting for. And we will win.