Several events were held across the
nation to mark two years since the mass shooting at the Pulse
nightclub in Orlando, Florida.
Forty-nine people died and dozens were
wounded at the now-shuttered gay nightclub when a lone gunman opened
fire on June 12, 2016.
A die-in protest calling for greater
gun control was held Tuesday at the U.S. Capitol in Washington.
Dozens of protesters, mostly students, spoke about how gun violence
has affected their lives, USA Today reported.
The names of the people who died during
the 2016 massacre were read aloud and roses were laid on the grassy
lawn overlooking the Washington Monument.
At the time, the Pulse shooting was the
deadliest in the United States.
On Monday, Pulse survivors were joined
by survivors of the February 14 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas
High School in Parkland, Florida for a rally at Orlando City Hall.
Organizers of the Pulse Rally to Honor
Them with Action said they would remember the Pulse victims by
booting out politicians who oppose gun-control measures and LGBT
protections.
Maria Wright, the mother of Pulse
victim Jerry Wright, spoke of how she and her husband lost their son
to gun violence.
“My beloved son and 48 others …
were ripped from our lives,” Wright said. “But it is becoming so
commonplace, we're beginning to accept it as normal. It is not
normal for our children to die while they sit at school, eat at a
restaurant, pray in church, listen to music at a concert or dance in
a club.”
“And we must let our leaders know
that we expect better,” she added.
On Tuesday, roughly 50 people gathered
on the steps of the Old Capitol in Tallahassee to remember those who
lost their lives in Orlando, the Tallahassee
Democrat reported.