Actors from the LGBTQ+ community are worried about an increase in homophobic and transphobic incidents in Quebec, but not about a possible killing targeting one of its establishments, as happened in Colorado on Saturday.
Five people have been killed and 18 others injured at an LGBTQ+ nightclub in Colorado Springs, US, after a 22-year-old man opened fire there.
Club Q had announced an LGBTQ+ event on Saturday, a party “with all kinds of gender identities and numbers” on the occasion of Transgender Day of Remembrance, celebrated internationally on November 20.
The drama has captured attention in the LGBTQ+ community so far in Quebec. “It’s madness,” laments, in an interview, Danny Jobin, co-owner of Le District and Le Date Karaoké bars, two establishments in the Village.
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, PRESS ARCHIVES
Danny Jobin, owner of Le Date karaoke bar
Having set up shop for 12 years in the Village, the latter was able to observe the evolution of the situation.
Admittedly, the neighborhood frequented by members of the LGBTQ+ community is struggling with well-documented issues of homelessness and drug use, but also with an upsurge in homophobic or transphobic incidents since the start of the pandemic.
“I find that people are less patient. We have a super nice clientele, but there is always one who ends up sneaking in, ”says Danny Jobin, citing an incident that occurred a few weeks ago with a young client who smashed his window.
Society is not well
But he’s not the only one noticing this trend. At the Interligne listening service, formerly Gai couting, there has also been an increase in “tensions” over the past year.
What we see is that in the population, after the pandemic wave, there are mental health issues, and many do not have access to resources. We notice that people are less and less embarrassed to have homophobic comments than in the past.
Pascal Vaillancourt, general manager of the Interligne listening service
“Just in the last few weeks, we see what happened in CEGEPs, following threats. I have the impression that society is not well, that society is sick and that this translates into acts of armed violence, and the LGBTQ community may not be spared, ”he adds.
The importance of education
Pascal Vaillancourt insists on the importance of continuing the education of young people in order to counter these societal excesses, but also invites politicians to adopt a unifying discourse, where minorities are respected.
But he and Danny Jobin are not overly concerned about a potential shooting targeting an establishment of the LGBTQ+ community in Quebec, like the one that occurred at Club Q in Colorado Springs.
At least two firearms were found at the scene. “I can confirm that the suspect used a rifle,” Colorado Springs City Police Deputy Chief Adrian Vasquez said Sunday.
The authorities identified the suspect, Anderson Lee Aldrich, without specifying whether he had acted alone and without commenting either on the motive for the attack. The man was arrested and taken to hospital.
With Agence France-Presse