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Mourning And Solidarity: Local Reaction To Orlando Shooting

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Flags fly at half-staff around the Washington Monument at daybreak in Washington with the U.S. Capitol in the background on Monday. President Obama ordered flags lowered to half-staff to honor the shooting victims. (J. David Ake/AP)
Flags fly at half-staff around the Washington Monument at daybreak in Washington with the U.S. Capitol in the background on Monday. President Obama ordered flags lowered to half-staff to honor the shooting victims. (J. David Ake/AP)

We devote the show to the tragedy in Orlando: the worst mass shooting in American history. At least 49 people were killed when a gunman burst into Pulse, a popular gay nightclub at closing time early Sunday morning. The killer reportedly professed allegiance to ISIS.

"This is being treated as a terrorist investigation," said President Obama Monday. "It appears that the shooter was inspired by various extremist information that was disseminated over the Internet."

At the statehouse, Gov. Baker said he spoke to his brother, who is gay, and other friends who are gay, asking how they are feeling.

"The answer I got, which I think is pretty consistent with the response you get from anybody in the LGBT community at the moment, was, 'I spend a lot of time thinking that things are getting better, and that things are improving and we all discover that there are people who just hate because we are who we are.' And there's no room for that here in the Commonwealth or anywhere in society. We should, of course, do all we can to resist that."

We explore as many of the implications as we can of this weekend's awful events, starting with the victims.

Two were from Springfield. 23-year-old Stanley Manolo Almodovar and 37-year-old KJ Morris. Almodovar's aunt remembers him as "an amazing person with a good soul." Morris' close friend says she was "a gentle giant. Really funny and quirky. Just genuinely kind."

Nick Bazo knew two other victims, he's associate director of programs and director of True Colors at Theater Offensive in Boston. His friends Christopher Leinonen and Juan Ramon Guerrero were partners.

We also hear from Attorney General Maura Healey, her reaction to the shootings in Orlando and how she thinks future gun deaths could be prevented. Arline Isaacson of the Massachusetts Gay and Lesbian Political Caucus will also share her reaction and the reaction of the state's LGBT community. Here & Now's Peter O'Dowd will speak to us from Florida, and we'll hear from Mahmud Jafri, trustee of the Masumeen Charitable Trust.

For our weekly CommonHealth segment, Carey Goldberg talks about the one group that couldn't donate blood Sunday: gay men who haven't been celibate for at least one year. She'll fill us in on the FDA regulations and why some believe they should be changed, given current HIV testing science.

Finally, how will the shootings in Orlando impact the 2016 presidential campaign? WBUR senior political reporter Anthony Brooks will join us from Manchester where he'll give an update on Donald Trump's campaign speech at St. Anselm College. We will also hear from Sabrina Saddiqui, political reporter for The Guardian U.S. She has been following Hillary Clinton's campaign and will join us from Cleveland, Ohio.

Guests

Nick Bazo, associate director of programs and director of True Colors at Theater Offensive in Boston. He was friends with two victims of the Orlando shootings: Christopher Leinonen and Juan Ramon Guerrero. He tweets @nickbazoTTO.

Maura Healey, Massachusetts attorney general, first openly gay attorney general in the U.S. She tweets @MassAGO.

Arline Isaacson, president of Isaacson Political Consultants and volunteer co-chair of the Massachusetts Gay and Lesbian Political Caucus.

Mahmud Jafri, trustee at the Masumeen Charitable Trust.

Farah Pandith, former special representative to Muslim communities. She tweets @Farah_Pandith.

Carey Goldberg, editor of WBUR's CommonHealth blog. She tweets @commonhealth.

Anthony Brooks, WBUR's senior political reporter. He tweets @anthonygbrooks.

Sabrina Saddiqui, political reporter for The Guardian U.S. She tweets @SabrinaSiddiqui.

Local Vigils

Homage To The Victims In Orlando: Abigail Adams Park, Weymouth

JP Vigil For Orlando: Soldier's Monument, Jamaica Plain

Vigil For Orlando: Parkman Bandstand Boston Common, Boston

This program aired on June 13, 2016.

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