A war is being waged against LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer) Americans, and it’s only getting worse.

As a community, we have constantly faced a higher risk of fatal gun violence in comparison to our straight counterparts – guns are used in nearly 60% of anti-LGBTQ homicides, as tracked by the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Projects in 2017. We are at an inflection point in this country with hate crimes and legislation targeting LGBTQ+ individuals on the rise. Unfortunately, for those who are afraid, ignorant, or hateful it's now easier for them to do harm to our LGBTQ+ community due to one specific thing: assault weapons.

Mass shootings targeting or affecting the LGBTQ+ community were committed using assault weapons. The Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando, Florida on June 12th, 2016 took the lives of 49 and the Club Q shooting in Colorado Springs, Colorado on November 20th, 2022 claimed the lives of five. Both were investigated as hate crimes, and both were committed with high-capacity assault rifles.

For many in the LGBTQ+ community, simply waking up and existing in the world is a battle for survival in itself. Despite having been afforded marriage equality in 2015, we still face the overwhelming task of determining whether or not a public environment is safe for us on a daily basis. Will we be directly confronted if we present as visibly queer or show displays of affection with a partner in public? Will we have to overhear incredibly hostile conversations about how our existence is wrong and should be criminalized? Will we have to witness the erasure of our important history of persecution and fight for our rights in schools, only for us to repeat it? Will we be targets of another mass shooting, simply because of who we are? 

America has never been a safe place for LGBTQ+ people – it’s been designed that way.

The continued existence and sale of assault weapons ensure that any shooting committed with them will be fatal, and the previous fact will continue to remain true.

The hate towards our community continues to be normalized and – in many instances – encouraged. With the increase in mass shootings targeting spaces that LGBTQ+ people come to for community, celebration, safety, and belonging, it’s become clear that there is no “right” time or place to be queer. This horrific violence has come right to our doorstep too many times, and taken too many lives.

LGBTQ+ individuals and allies: we need your help to get the message to Congress that assault weapons destroy the lives of all Americans. Let us use our collective voice to stand against the violence that has had an outsized impact on our community. 

March Fourth is working tirelessly with one goal in mind: a federal ban on assault weapons. We are calling on the U.S. Senate to pass S.25 and the House of Representatives to pass H.R. 698, to federally ban assault weapons so we can stop the never-ending list of mass shootings in America. To donate directly to March Fourth, visit our site: https://www.wemarchfourth.org/donate

          – Louise Irpino

            LGBTQ+ Community Member

            LGBTQ+ Outreach Captain, March Fourth