Never Again, Again: Ten Years Since the Pulse Nightclub Shooting

Editorial

(Rob Maxwell/Unsplash)

June 12th, 2026 

MIAMI - Two hundred and thirty miles away lays the rubble of what was once the Pulse Nightclub. A vibrant gay bar in Orlando, it used to provide a safe haven and a place for celebration. That all changed exactly one decade ago. 

Deemed by the FBI as the worst terrorist attack on U.S. soil since September 11, 2001, the shooting resulted in 49 deaths and 53 wounded. Despite most of the victims being LGBTQ+ and Latino men, the Pulse Nightclub Shooting is yet to be recognized as an act of hate toward the queer community. 

This act of violence serves us as a reminder of the importance of Pride Month and the fight for LGBTQ+ equality. 

As reported by the Los Angeles Times, at least four regulars at Pulse had seen the shooter at the club before. One witness, Ty Smith, claims to have seen him at least a dozen times, often sitting alone in the corner, getting drunk, and speaking about his father, wife and child. 

On June 12th, 2016, the shooter told 911 that he was attacking Pulse on behalf of the leader of the Islamic State. Yet, a search of his internet history revealed his alignment with Al Qaeda and Al Nusra Front, both groups that oppose the Islamic State and LGBTQ+ rights. 

The shooter’s complex relationship to queerness and tendency toward extremist and violent rhetoric give us a small glimpse into his tumultuously horrific mind. In a world where queerness often comes with fear and shame, the question remains whether internalized homophobia led him to target Pulse.

Despite the lack of official acknowledgement, the shooting at Pulse Nightclub was a hate crime potentially fueled by internalized homophobia. This Pride Month, StoryBytes remembers Pulse in an attempt to honor its victims and do its part in the continuous fight for LGBTQ+ justice. 

Next year, when the city of Orlando’s memorial stands, and the rubble of Pulse Nightclub is nowhere in sight, we hope that our combined efforts bring us closer to ensuring hate crimes such as this never occur again.

(Yoav Hornung/Unsplash)