Ten years ago today, our community experienced one of the darkest moments in modern LGBTQ+ history. In the early hours of June 12, 2016, 49 people were killed and dozens more injured during Latin Night at Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida. Most of those lost were Latino. Many were young. All were loved.
For many LGBTQ+ people, Pulse was more than a nightclub. It was a place of joy. A place of friendship. A place where people could dance, celebrate, and exist fully as themselves.
It was a community space.
The tragedy at Pulse reminded us that violence does not simply take lives—it attempts to disrupt belonging. It attempts to make people question whether they are safe, whether they are welcome, and whether there is space for them in the world. Ten years later, we remember the 49 individuals whose lives were stolen.
We remember the survivors. We remember the families, friends, and communities forever changed by that night. And we remember what Pulse represented.
As we gather this Pride Month under the theme Until We’re All Free, we are reminded that freedom is about more than rights and protections. It is about having places where people can be fully themselves.
Places where they can gather without fear. Places where they can build friendships, find community, celebrate milestones, and create memories. Places where they belong.
That is why LGBTQ+ spaces matter. That is why community centers matter. That is why Pride matters. And that is why Stonewall Columbus remains committed to our North Star: To ensure that every LGBTQ+ person in Central Ohio is connected, supported, and able to thrive in a community where they are seen and belong.
Today we remember. Today we honor.
And today we recommit ourselves to building the kind of community the 49 deserve to be remembered within—a community rooted in love, belonging, and the belief that none of us are truly free until we’re all free.
— Stonewall Columbus
