'It's a form of terrorism': London, Ont. reacts to Colorado mass shooting
When Kelly Roy went to sleep Saturday night, she did so coming off the high of a successful party night at Lavish, London’s lone queer nightclub she works at.
But she woke up Sunday morning to a very different mood.
"Our phones were just going off like crazy," said Roy.
Roy isn't a member of the LGBTQ2S+ community herself, but she's deeply ingrained in London's queer community as Lavish's operations director.
Friends and colleagues were frantically messaging her about a deadly shooting that happened the night before at a Colorado Springs gay bar. Five people were killed, and 25 more were injured.
"You feel heartbroken," said Roy. “This is a slap in the face to let us know that they're still not safe."
"It really does feel like you're being targeted for something that is simply who you are," said WG Pearson, chair of Western University's Department of Gender, Sexuality, and Women's Studies, who uses they/them pronouns.
"It's a form of terrorism, in its own way," Pearson said. "If you don't behave the way we want you to behave, if you don't become the person we want you to become, we will attack you."
Lavish is next scheduled to be open Friday night, and Roy says that isn't changing. She said they're comfortable with the space's safety.
"We have security at the door all the time,” she said. “No one is able to bring in a bag.”
"This is not going to change anything for us," added Pearson. "It's going to make us sad. It's going to make us angry, but we're going to persist. We're going to carry on in the face of all of this.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Mystik Dan wins the 150th Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in a three-horse photo finish
Mystik Dan won the 150th Kentucky Derby in a photo finish, edging out Forever Young and Sierra Leone for the upset victory.
Bodies recovered in Mexico likely 2 Australians, 1 American who went missing: officials
Three bodies recovered in an area of Baja California are likely to be those of the two Australians and an American who went missing last weekend during a camping and surfing trip, the state prosecutor’s office said Saturday.
No proof man lied to brother about number of kittens born in litter, B.C. tribunal rules
A man was denied a $5,000 payout from his brother after a B.C. tribunal dismissed his claim disputing how many kittens were born in a litter.
Work stoppage possible as WestJet issues lockout notice to maintenance engineers' union
A lockout notice issued by WestJet to a union representing aircraft maintenance engineers could result in a work stoppage next week.
'I just can't believe that it took so long': Body found in wreckage 3 months after deadly fire
A man accused of arson in a January Old Strathcona apartment fire is expected to be charged with manslaughter after a body was discovered in the burned building late last month.
Quebec police hand out hundreds of tickets to Hells Angels and other bikers before 'first run' meeting
Quebec provincial police handed out hundreds of fines to Hells Angels members and other supporting motorcycle clubs who met for their 'first run' in a small town near Sherbrooke, Que.
London Drugs begins 'gradual reopening' on 7th day after cyberattack
Almost a week after all London Drugs stores across Western Canada abruptly closed amid a cyberattack, they began a "gradual reopening" on Saturday.
Auston Matthews skates ahead of Game 7, status unclear with season on the line
Auston Matthews was back on the ice with his teammates Saturday.
Russia puts Ukrainian President Zelenskyy on its wanted list
Russia has put Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on its wanted list, Russian state media reported Saturday, citing the interior ministry’s database.