There you go again, America.

Among others: Columbine. Virginia Tech. Sandy Hook. Charleston. Isla Vista. And now, tragically, Orlando. America's gun culture is nothing new at all; their Second Amendment was adopted in 1791. And I acknowledge weapons sometimes are needed purely for self-defense, in very extreme cases. But while you consider the right to bear arms, let us also consider the right to live, happily and safely.

Particularly, this time, those of us who are marginalised. In this case, the LGBTQ community. Firstly, who- or whatever you're attracted to or identify as, nobody else's private life, especially if they're a stranger, can really affect your own. It's none of our business what others do in their bedrooms anyway. Like it or not, this is 2016, and homophobia and transphobia in all forms should've been extinct long ago. And being marginalised myself as I have a disability, I feel I am familiar with something like what it is to face either of those evils, and I'd be ashamed of myself if I didn't do my bit.

More specifically, this carnage occurred at a gay nightclub. A place where its customers should have felt loved and safe and free to forget all their troubles, even if for just one night. But as we know, they felt the exact opposite. It's now been revealed Omar Mateen attended the same club several times before, perhaps to plan his attack with an insider's knowledge of the venue. The security and management staff aren't responsible here; they probably just assumed all those previous times since he was there that he was an LGBTQ person, so why not let him in? Obviously, however, I hope they upgrade their security immediately for this reason.

 However, we also should not use this tragedy to justify Islamophobia (and I'm an atheist, by the way). Extremist and fundamentalist Muslims have cast quite a long shadow over their religion since September 11, but the number of terrorist attacks and hate crimes like this (and 9/11, for that matter) which have provoked worldwide condemnation from Islamic groups proves they do not all condone the views and actions of their extremist or fundamentalist counterparts. And back to the U.S. Constitution, the FIRST Amendment states all Americans are entitled to freedom of religion.

I am not trying to capitalise on this reprehensible tragedy, or to indoctrinate anybody. But I have and will not apologise for any part of this entry, and indeed I stand right by all of it, as I stand right by all the victims, their loved ones and their communities (keeping in mind they were also racially diverse collectively). None of us can sit back and turn a blind eye to events like this, or the ideologies  (another of which I believe was in this case America's military actions in the Middle East, as the perpetrator here was of Afghan parentage) or legislations which cause them. You think having the right to bear arms is a good thing? What if you got SHOT in your arms?