Two survivors of the Pulse nightclub, Luis Javier Ruiz and Angel Colon, say that they’re no longer gay and will participate in the Sept. 14 Freedom March, an event organized an anti-gay Christian group that believes God can turn “free” people from being queer. Worse yet, they’re marching in Florida, about 10 minutes away from where the 2016 shooting occurred.
While your first inclination might be to mock Ruiz and Colon, traumatic experiences can cause people to make poor and illogical decisions in the hopes of restoring peace and calm to their lives. Also, the Freedom March is a laughably small event. Its 2018 march snagged a whopping 50 people, but the group’s views are no laughing matter.
Related: This lesbian political candidate told a ton of lies about saving Pulse shooting victims
Newsweek reports that event organizer’s website touts “freedom from homosexual/transgender lifestyles by the grace and power of Jesus Christ.”
Furthermore, “Ruiz and Colon have also founded Fearless Identity, an organization that encourages people to reject their LGBT identities,” Newsweek writes. They founded the group after receiving backlash for identifying as ex-gay.
Ruiz participated in the 2018 Freedom March. At the time, he wrote:
Going through old pictures of the night of Pulse a memory were my struggles of perversion, heavy drinking to drown out everything and having promiscuous sex that led to HIV my struggles were real! The enemy had its grip and now God has taken me from that moment and has given me Christ Jesus. I’ve grown to know his love in a deeper level.
In this picture two of out of 49 — my close friend on right and in back of me — are no longer with us. They lost their life that night. I should’ve been number 50, but now I have the chance to live in relationship and not religion, not just loving Christ, but being in love with Christ and sharing his love. I know who I am and I am not defined with who the enemy says I used to be but who Christ Jesus says I am.
Before founding an antigay group, Colon was a dancer. Newsweek writes:
“He was shot six times in the attack and was trampled by people trying to flee the club. He was unable to walk for two months and, during his recovery, spoke out against gun violence. In 2016, he appeared on the cover of LGBT newsmagazine The Advocate for its People of the Year issue.”
JaredNorthcutt30
May I say something? As an asexual trans woman using an old account, I totally understand their logic. Multiple rape survivor here. Tired of men’s constant violence enacted upon my body. That said, I wouldn’t form an ex-gay group over it. I have other things to do with my time.
Sister Bertha Bedderthanyu
Multiple rapes? Didn’t you develop a sense of imminent danger after the first one?
Cam
Troll alert.
Whenever a screename tries to justify itself before supporting anti-LGBTQ bigots, it’s the troll red flag.
As a……I feel that……..Because the bigots are right.
rustyiam
Public shaming people who survived a horrible tragedy, unbelievable! And no that doesn’t mean I support their affiliation with that church!
Cam
Always ready to defend ANYBODY in an anti-LGBTQ group aren’t you?
Pretty funny you’re speaking out against public shaming since you’re all for shaming any LGBTQ people in articles on here.
Rex Huskey
I want to know something…. did you give that Cam-gurl an STD…. or is she just an ignorant bitch?
Cam
@Rex Huskey
Translation: You couldn’t argue the point so just lashed out.
Question for Queerty, is this type of post relevant to the discussion?
jeffjj
The “experience” of these two is in no way common to LGBTQ 2 people in general, as we all know transformation therapy is bogus and outlawed in many, many jurisdictions…
Sister Bertha Bedderthanyu
I can understand his anger and his belief that had he been thinking this way or that way before the shooting none of this would have occurred but he fails to understand that deranged men nowadays will walk into a church and shoot it up as well. Let us not forget that deadly shooting that took place in Texas in a church that practically disappeared from the headlines or lets just say it was the fourth page by day five. Did they do the wrong thing by picking the wrong day to go to church, the wrong church to go to or the sins they committed were so horrific just look at the destruction it brought on others who had nothing to do with their sins but their very presence caused? This poor soul needs serious counseling and needs to reconcile with his drinking and the fact that sometimes it takes longer than three years to get well after years of partying with drugs and alcohol.
Chrisk
In my experience with the church in a past life he’s exactly the kind of ex gay these churches prey upon. Never met one yet that didn’t have some deep traumatic issue such as drug addiction, homeless, to you name it.
JoshGL
“Multiple rapes? Didn’t you develop a sense of imminent danger after the first one?”
You are an incredible piece of shit.
Sister Bertha Bedderthanyu
JoshGL you have me all wrong. I think it was appropriate to ask since the word multiple was used in her comment. It doesn’t make a difference to me whether the work location is the back seat of a car, bushes or down here in the amen pew with me and the girls of the First Self-Righteous Church in Pascagoula one develops a sense of something is wrong or proceed with caution before allowing further actions. For someone to have been raped multiple times and grown just strikes me as a person who needs to come to church with us. In no way am I being divinely judgmental.
JaredNorthcutt30
So wait. I’m supposed to go to some random church? How’s that any different than the Pulse survivors being invited to some ex-gay church? A third-party is imposing their belief system on a person with PTSD. That makes absolutely no sense whatsoever.
JaredNorthcutt30
And I proceeded what was wrong. Having sex with dudes. So I stopped.
Cam
Translation: Their names got out after the shooting, and bigoted family or others got to them, and some conservatives groups reached out with cash to get them to do this, since that pro gun Parkland survivor kid collapsed as a P.R. stunt after his racism went public.
Chrisk
“he appeared on the cover of LGBT newsmagazine The Advocate for its People of the Year issue.”
I agree. I get the feeling they were living life on the down low or at least to their families and then this. As they say. If you could reason with religious people there would be no religious people.
PLAYS WELL WITH OTHERS
1000% Co-sign!!!
Am sure they are having “expenses” taken care of….
Colon is quoted as saying he was raised “in a good Christian home”
Good people died in that abhorrent act. Shame these pukes survived to desecrate their murders
Jackrabbit
I have no doubt those 2 will be on their knees, again, but not in pray. You can’t change who you are and that has been proven time after time. I wish them luck in their endeavors, the community will still be here for them when they come to their senses.
Chrisk
It depends on whether they’re truly gay or bisexual. If the latter they can go without. However, I agree and biology will win over voo doo religion every single time.
Sister Bertha Bedderthanyu
Chris, if you have a minute do a google search on their names and be sure to include the word Pulse in your search and then click on images. What came up when I did it were two men whom it would not shock me were totally embarrassed that their families found out thru that incident their suspicions about them were true, they were gay. Now, having been discovered and outed and fearing the lose of their families more than their love for men they chose this route. I have nothing but sympathy for people whom are in that situation. Both of them are young and its hard to not understand their present state of mind. Its like a person who blames himself for being laid off a job even though it was not their fault, it was the business climate. In this case it was a frustrated immigrant armed with an assault weapon that couldn’t accept he was gay and probably argued the day before with his father about whether or not he was gay. They (the laid off worker and the ex-gays) vow to work harder for that to not happen again but it will, just be patient.
Rex Huskey
I’m thinking they’ve read some of the post these vapid mean nasty queens on here have posted and decided if that is what people compare them to… f’ that!
Cam
This screename will always defend anti-LGB TQ bigots, and will do it by attacking us. Notice how it has nothing bad to say about bigotry, but LGBTQ people are “Nasty Queens”?
Sweetie, you need to get better at trolling.
SPEEDOSWIMMER
rex, be sure to take a good long look in your mirror.
James Hart
If these two dudes want to be celibate, then that’s up to them, however, they will never be able to “pray the gay away.” Can’t be done.
JaredNorthcutt30
I mean, it could be done. Whenever I see a dong now, I’m like, “What’s the point? Isn’t there something on Netflix?’ And that’s a true-life story.
Cam
This is now your second attempt to justify anti-LGBTQ bigotry with a completely unrelated topic.
JaredNorthcutt30
Well, you sure love replying. Guess what, sweetie? My life experience is my own.
JaredNorthcutt30
Let’s get another thing straight. I’m trans and asexual. That’s TWO of the other letters in that acronym. I know you’re super-concerned about the Gs. But spoiler alert: You used the other letters in your response.
Heywood Jablowme
From their quotes, it almost seems like they’re both jerking off to pictures of “Christ Jesus.” (Apparently saying his name backwards is more magical or something?) Nothing about having sex with women, which is a good thing for the women I guess. Well a lot of those pictures of Jesus are pretty hot! Bare torso, six pack, & I always liked his beard.
J W G
Haven’t met a homophobe yet that wasn’t gay.
KZNBama
True dat!
radiooutmike
Those poor bastards deserve sympathy and understanding. They are just doing what they can to make it day to day. I can’t imagine the amount of survivor’s guilt they must have.
I hope that in the future, they’ll be able to accept themselves for who they truly are.
piriblue
Talk about being scared straight. I personally feel that they are somehow still in shock and are getting the wrong type of help. Perhaps being told that god was punishing them for being gay. It is usually
what the church tells us. Seriously speaking they should get proper help. I am afraid that they might
try to be with a woman and have trouble getting aroused. Leading to a total mind fuck.
SPEEDOSWIMMER
I want to be… under the sea… on an Octopus’ garden in the shade…
James
TWO MORONS WHO WERE PROBABLY CHEAP HUSTLERS TO BEGIN WITH AND WHO HAVE NOW FORMED THEIR OWN HATE GROUP. LOSERS. MAY THEY ROT IN HELL WHERE THEY BELONG.
djmcgamester
These guys are clearly suffering some sort of psychological trauma they’ve never dealt with. They’re blaming potential victims for the actions of someone who hates gay. They have now placed themselves in the same camp as the murderers. If the guy shot a bunch of LGBTQ people socializing at a picnic in the park would it still be about perversion and heavy drinking? No. Just an excuse, and one that doesn’t even hold up when any club anywhere has people engaging in promiscuous sex and heavy drinking.
irbaboon
The South is such a rotten place