We urge everyone to pray for peace and we also pray for the individual or group responsible for this mischievous and unwarranted defacing of our ministrys property.. In the 1990s it became known as a home base for evangelical nonprofits and Christian ministries including the broadcast ministry Focus on the Family and the Fellowship of Christian Cowboys. CNNs Alaa Elassar, Elizabeth Wolfe and Theresa Waldrop contributed to this report. WATCH: Why far-right groups are increasingly targeting the LGBTQ community. At a hearing on Wednesday, prosecutors for the first time provided evidence related to why they charged the 22-year-old suspect with hate crimes as well as murder in the shooting at Club Q. The shooting at Club Q occurred at a time when anti-LGBTQ sentiment continues to flare across the US. A person pauses to pay respects at a makeshift memorial in November 2022, near Club Q. In the 1940s, military bases arrived. But many trans people dont use their legal names, even though many still use IDs that incorrectly list their name and gender. More than one-third of residents are nonwhite twice as many as in 1980. Located in the shadow of the southern Rocky Mountains, the Colorado city of nearly 500,000 residents is home to five nearby military bases and the staunchly anti / This is a time for prayer, grieving and healing, not vandalism and the spreading of hate., Focus on the Family defines itself as a global Christian ministry dedicated to helping families thrive. The organization supports the anti-abortion movement in the abortion debate, and features anti-LGBT+ broadcasts, including Leaving Homosexuality and Finding Forgiveness and Transformed by Grace: Leaving Homosexuality to Follow Christ., The families of the five individuals killed in Saturday nights senseless attack are in our prayers, Daly said. Terms of Service | Privacy Policy | Community Guidelines | KRDO Jobs | FCC Applications |, KRDO FCC Public File | KRDO FCC Applications, Breaking News On the night of the shooting, the suspect arrived at Club Q around 10:14 p.m. and stayed for just a few minutes before leaving and coming back inside with guns, including an assault-style rifle, she said. Below you will find contact information and answers to a candidate questionnaire from The Gazette. Colorado Springs native Ashlyn May, who grew up in a Christian church but left when it didnt accept her queer identity, said one woman from the group in the tent asked if she could pray for her and a friend who accompanied her to the memorial. Their blood is on your hands, vandals spray-painted at the Colorado Springs headquarters of Focus on the Family. Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in, Please refresh your browser to be logged in, Colorado Springs shooting: Club Q owners blame new type of hate as suspect held without bond, Ex-Trump lawyer says Colorado Springs victims are reaping the consequences of having eternal damnation, Mass shooting at LGBT+ club follows wave of threats to drag performers and venues, Colorado Springs shooting suspect Anderson Lee Aldrich seen for first time in court, Influential anti-gay evangelical group vandalised after mass shooting, Extra 20% off selected fashion and sportswear at Very, Up to 20% off and extra perks with Booking.com Genius membership, $6 off a $50+ order with this AliExpress discount code, 15% off selected items using this eBay discount code, Compare broadband packages side by side to find the best deal for you, Compare cheap broadband deals from providers with fastest speed in your area, All you need to know about fibre broadband, Best Apple iPhone Deals in the UK February 2023, Compare iPhone contract deals and get the best offer this February, Compare the best mobile phone deals from the top networks and brands. Focus on the Family President Jim Daly condemned the shooting on the day it occurred. But in the face of anti-LGBTQ discrimination and hostility, many Colorado Springs residents established LGBTQ funds and advocacy groups, Colorado Springs Indy columnist Brandon Flanery wrote in 2020. Following the incident, someone tried to conceal the graffiti with a tarp and cardboard, but as of Friday the tarp had fallen off, leaving much of the wording visible. A bartender who found a place to shine. Many police departments lack training or specific policies for interacting with LGBTQ residents, according to a report on policing and LGBTQ people by the National LGBT HIV Criminal Justice Working Group, Lambda Legal and the National Center for Transgender Equality. Candidate name: Tom Strand. It feels like the city is kind of at this tipping point, said Candace Woods, a queer minister and chaplain who has called Colorado Springs home for 18 years. Their blood is on your hands. Opinion: Colorado farms going fallow? Stephanie Vigil was just elected to represent Colorado Springs in the state legislature. Will that affect potential hate crime charges? But since hes been here, he said, it has risen from recession-era struggles and become culturally and economically vibrant for all kinds of people. Brandon Wolf, Equality Florida press secretary and a survivor of the Pulse nightclub shooting, said the killings at Club Q were the result of years of hateful rhetoric toward LGBTQ people. The man suspected of killing five people and wounding 17 others at a Colorado Springs LGBTQ nightclub will face multiple murder and hate crime charges, It's an apparent reference to the mass shooting at the gay nightclub, Club Q, where five people died Saturday night. Now five are dead, at least 25 are injured, and an unknown number are traumatized for life by an act of violence primed by conspiracy thinking and hateful propaganda, Wilson concludes. Megan Ulu-Lani Boyanton joined The Denver Post in January 2022 as a business reporter, focusing her coverage on social inequities in business. 4 min read. Mike Trout, a senior vice president for Focus on the Family, said none of the hostages was seriously injured. Try the Morning Bell and get the days most important news and commentary from a team committed to the truth in formats that respect your timeand your intelligence. Jessi Hazelward wipes a tear from her friend Amanda Grueschow's face during a vigil in Colorado Springs on Sunday. We do. Herod and others who have been around long enough are remembering this week how in the 1990s, at the height of the religious rights influence, the Colorado Springs-based group Colorado for Family Values spearheaded a statewide push to pass Amendment 2 and make it illegal for communities to pass ordinances protecting LGBTQ people from discrimination. Thank you. It is no accident that this happened in Colorado Springs, a city steeped in homophobia, transphobia, and white supremacy, the statement continues. Wilson singles out Colorado Springs and Focus on the Family: Colorado Springs, where the shooting took place, has itself long been a hub for the Christian Right, which for decades has pumped out anti-LGBTQ propaganda in the name of a narrow and exclusionary definition of family. The Orange County Sheriffs Department did not immediately respond to CNNs request for comment on their handling of Gardens case. After the shooting, Focus on the Familys president, Jim Daly, said that like the rest of the community he was mourning the tragedy. Five lives taken.". Springs police say they do not have any suspects in the vandalism. Americans are once again reeling in the face of unspeakable tragedy, after a mass shooting at a Colorado Springs gay bar left five dead and at least 25 injured. But I will also acknowledge that I chose to leave the Springs because I felt like when it came to the elected leadership, the vocal leadership in this community, it wasnt supportive of all people, wasnt supportive of Black people, wasnt supportive of immigrants, not supportive of LGBTQ people, Herod said at a memorial event downtown. This is a time for prayer, grieving and healing, not vandalism and the spreading of hate. WebFocus on the Family - Visit Colorado Springs Home Focus on the Family 8605 Explorer Dr | Colorado Springs, CO | 80920 Main: (719) 531-3400 Map Website Overview Focus on the Family welcomes visitors to the ministry's Welcome Center in Colorado Springs. COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- Focus on the Family is the target of graffiti referencing the Club Q shooting. But as the praying carried on and the woman urged May and her friend to turn to God, she felt as if praying had turned into preying. Woman shot near CU Boulder overnight, suspect is at large, This is unprecedented": Avian flu has killed 12,000 birds in Colorado, Skygazers will have a great view Wednesday of two planets that look like they are almost touching, Letters: Proposed age limit for gun ownership in Colorado doesn't make sense, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot concedes defeat, Southern California home sales fall to all-time low, NYC Mayor Adams dismisses need to separate church and state, declares himself a servant of God, Zero-calorie sweetener linked to heart attack and stroke, study finds, Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. A sign on the property of the Colorado-based evangelical organisation Focus on the Family was vandalised with graffiti reading blood is on your hands and fives lives taken, an apparent reference to a mass shooting inside a Colorado Springs LGBT+ nightclub that left five dead and injured 18 others. The organization's website has numerous "resources" for sexuality. Outside the scene of a shooting at Planned Parenthood in Colorado Springs in 2015. Priester-Collins watched the preliminary hearing remotely because she was unsure she would be able to stay calm inside the courtroom with the person accused in the attack sitting feet away. The Orange County Sheriffs Department had previously responded to the 2016 mass shooting at Pulse, a popular gay nightclub in Orlando, where 49 people were killed. My book Making Hate Pay: The Corruption of the Southern Poverty Law Center traces how the SPLCoriginally a public-interest legal nonprofit representing poor people in the Southbecame a juggernaut of political fundraising, in part by suing white supremacist organizations into bankruptcy and then using that work to exaggerate the threat of hate groups and to scare donors into ponying up cash. Join the millions of people who benefit from The Daily Signals fair, accurate, trustworthy reporting with direct access to: Dont have time to read the Washington Post or New York Times? Misgendering a trans victim of crime can also thwart the delivery of justice. Instead of relying on IDs or legal identifiers, Vasquez and the police department communicated with victims families through victim advocates, who provided the names and pronouns by which their loved ones were known, Colorado Springs Police Department spokesperson Pamela Castro told CNN in an email. Under the resources for homosexuality and sexual identity, there are video links, book recommendations, and more for parents and people looking for a "Christian" perspective. You can review our Community Guidelines by clicking here. The SPLC has long branded mainstream conservative and Christian organizations as hate groups, placing them on a list with the likes of the Ku Klux Klan. A statement from a group claiming responsibility for the vandalism, shared by a Twitter account called colorado peoples press, said we chose to proceed with this action because of the incredible violence that Focus on the Family continues to perpetuate against the LGBT+ community. The families of the five individuals killed inSaturday night's senseless attack are in our prayers. 1 killed in northeast Colorado Springs car crash, marking the 10th traffic fatality of 2023, Serious crash along Highway 24 on the west side of Colorado Springs Tuesday afternoon, WATCH - Colorado grocery and convenience stores to sell wine, Standoff near Pueblo County elementary school ends with suspect shot, Springs restaurant holding fundraiser for fallen Fountain police officer, senseless loss of life at Club Q nearly one week ago, first court appearance by video Wednesday, Richard Fierro and Thomas James stopped him that night, in 2014 spoke out against adding sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression to non-discrimination laws. Club Q had been considered a safe haven for LGBTQ people in the conservative community of Colorado Springs. When the spray-painted message was shared on Twitter, several users supported the vandalism. However, these laws and policies allow dangerous individuals open admission to public accommodations. Five lives taken, reads the graffiti on the brick Focus on the Family sign, which outside its facility off Briargate Parkway in north Colorado Springs. Contests & Promotions, 2023, Pikes Peak Television, Inc. Colorado Springs, CO, USA, Accidente de trenes en Grecia deja al menos 36 muertos y decenas de heridos, New housing opens for 59 homeless veterans on VA land in Los Angeles 6 years after 1,200 units were promised, He shot me! fatally wounded 9-year-old in Orlando shooting cried as she ran to mother, affidavit says. Florida Gov. Refusing to acknowledge someones humanity in death adds insult to injury, according to GLAAD, compounding the tragedy by invalidating the persons lived reality.. Politics here lean more conservative than in comparable-size cities. Signs and flowers are placed at a memorial outside of Club Q in Colorado Springs. 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