Reporting from Orlando, Fla. — At least 50,000 people packed into an Orlando park for a candlelight vigil Sunday night, one week since a gunman shot and killed 49 people at a gay nightclub.
The event, both mournful and at times carnivalesque, drew a diverse crowd -- gay couples, Latinos, Muslims.
People chanted: “Peace, love, Pulse” and “Love is love is love.”
Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer asked the crowd to “stand up and speak out against hatred, violence and division.”
“Last Sunday was the worst day in the history of our community,” Dyer said. “But we will not and have not been defined by a hate-filled act of a deranged killer.”
Teresa Jacobs, mayor of Orange County, Fla., made a tearful plea to straight people in the crowd: “Open your hearts to acceptance,” she said.
She asked parents and pastors to help stop gay young people from living secret or “hollow” lives “in an effort to be accepted.”
“Enough is enough is enough,” she said.
When gay Orlando City Commissioner Patty Sheehan walked to the microphone, the crowd erupted in cheers. Since the shooting, she said, she’s heard from faith leaders who have “apologized and repented for their past behavior.”
She added: “I want to be clear. Hating a Muslim person is the same thing as hating a gay person.”
For Marisol Del Rio, a Latina lesbian who attended the vigil, the passing of a week hasn’t made the attack any less raw. She said she’s angry that the gunman, Omar Mateen, is dead, because that means he can’t give her answers she wants.
“Why specifically that club?” she asked, shaking her head. “Why wait until Latin Night? Why? Why my people?”
Nearby, an Orlando doctor, Sajid Chaudhary, who is Muslim, stood smiling at passers-by and holding a sign denouncing “all acts of terrorism.”
He called Mateen, who is said to have voiced support for an Islamic terrorist group during the attack, “a crazy person” and “a wild animal.”
“We are Muslim and we are not part of this person,” Chaudhary said, tears filling his eyes.
Julia Meffen, 48, said she attended the event with a friend to honor the victims and show solidarity with her community. She runs a pet boutique called Woof Gang Bakery and said one of the victims, Eddie Justice, 30, was a customer. He often came in, she said, with his small dog.
Meffen, a lesbian, said she hoped the shooting opened people’s eyes to the discrimination and violence faced by members of the LGBT community. “We get this every day,” she said, “just not on this scale.”
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Inaya Bava, 5, on June 16, 2016, draws on crosses set up to remember the victims of the Pulse nightclub shooting at the Orlando Regional Medical Center.
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Relatives of those killed and wounded in the Pulse nightclub attack arrive at Amway Center on June 16, 2016, for private meetings with President Obama.
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President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden bring flowers to the makeshift memorial at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts.
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Jiffy Lube employee Ralph Nieves puts up a sign of support for the Orlando community following the shooting at the Pulse nightclub.
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Sarah Roemer, left, and Brandi Van Dongen, nurses at Arnold Palmer Childrens Hospital in Orlando, pray at one of the memorials.
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The Parliament House is one of the largest nightclubs catering to the LGBT clients.
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Rafael Rivera, left and Jeannette Gonzalez grieve at a wake for Eric Ortiz, one of the victims of the Pulse nightclub shooting.
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Members of the media and public wait to catch a glimpse of President Obama at Amway Center.
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A prayer service is held on June 15, 2016, for the victims of the Pulse Nightclub shooting at Delaney Street Baptist Church in Orlando, Fla.
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Kelly Greenwood prepares a casket on June 16, 2016, at the Cardinal Casket Company in Orlando, Fla.
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Candles are placed under American flags set in a circle outside a vigil at Christ Church Unity for the shooting victims.
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At the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, Taylor Green, 25, left, and Brittany Spencer, 25, grieve for those killed in the Pulse nightclub attack.
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ATF investigators continue to work the scene of the Pulse nightclub shooting along Orange Ave.
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Friends and family attend the funeral of Angel Luis Candelario-Padro. It was the first funeral for the 49 victims of the Pulse nightclub shooting.
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Doctors, nurses and first-responders at a prayer service in the emergency room at Florida Hospital in Orlando to honor the victims of the nightclub shooting.
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FBI investigators continue to work at the Pulse nightclub on June 15.
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Mourners embrace outside the visitation for Pulse nightclub shooting victim Javier Jorge-Reyes.
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Mourners gather at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts in Orlando for a vigil in honor of the nightclub attack victims.
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Mourners gather at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts in Orlando for a vigil in honor of the nightclub attack victims. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Mourners gather at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts in Orlando for a vigil in honor of the nightclub attack victims. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Michelle Moment sing praise during a service at the First Baptist Church of Orlando during a special prayer service for the attack on Pulse nightclub.
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“We were protected, we were saved it was just a miracle,” said Orlando Torres, 52. A promoter at Pulse, Torres was trapped in a bathroom stall with a friend. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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With stitches in his hand, gunshot victim Angel Colon tells his story to the media at a news conference at Orlando Regional Medical Center on Tuesday.
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Patience Carter after describing the attack on the Pulse nightclub in Orlando. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times )
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Gunshot victim Patience Carter, 20, left, is consoled by Dr. Neil Finkler at a news conference at Florida Hospital, joined by Dr. Brian Vickaryous, center, and fellow survivor Angel Santiago, 32, right, where they described the attack and its aftermath.
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Angel Santiago on June 14, describes how events unfolded during the mass shooting at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando two days earlier.
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Doctors and other staff at Orlando Regional Medical Center involved in the response to the nightclub shooting answer questions at a news conference on June 14, 2016.
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Thousands gather for a memorial at the Plaza at the Dr. Phillips Performing Arts Center in downtown Orlando on June 13, 2016, to honor those killed and wounded in the Pulse nightclub attack.
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Alison Cossio, center, holds a photo of her friend Christopher Sanfeliz, who one of the victims of the Orlando shooting, during a June 13, 2016, candlelight vigil and rally, hosted by the Los Angeles LGBT Center, at Los Angeles City Hall.
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Rabbi Neil Comess-Daniels plays guitar and sings during the Islamic Center of Southern California and ICUJP Interfaith Vigil Against Violence and Hatred Monday,night in remembrance of the 50 people killed in Orlando.
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Marwa Balkar holds a candle at the Islamic Center of Southern California and ICUJP Interfaith Vigil Against Violence and Hatred on June 13, 2016, in remembrance of the 49 people killed in Orlando, Fla.
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Los Angeles City Hall is lit up in colors of the rainbow during a candlelight vigil and rally, hosted by the Los Angeles LGBT Center.
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Scott Phillips and Em Enagan mourn for the 49 lives lost in the Orlando shooting during a vigil at Los Angeles City Hall.
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A song is sung during a candlelight vigil and rally, hosted by the Los Angeles LGBT Center, at Los Angeles City Hall, for the victims of Sunday’s shooting massacre at a gay nightclub in Orlando.
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Thousands gather for a memorial rally at the Plaza at the Dr. Phillips Performing Arts Center in downtown Orlando on Monday to honor those killed and wounded in the Pulse nightclub attack.
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Madeline Lago, 15, and her mother Carmen Lago were among the thousands who gathered for a memorial at the Plaza at the Dr. Phillips Performing Arts Center in downtown Orlando on Monday to honor those killed and wounded in the Pulse nightclub attack. They bowed their heads as the bell was tolled.
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Thousands gather for a memorial at the Plaza at the Dr. Phillips Performing Arts Center in downtown Orlando on Monday to honor those killed and wounded in the Pulse nightclub attack.
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Friends and relatives bring flowers and remembrances to the plaza at the Dr. Phillips Performing Arts Center in downtown Orlando on Monday.
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Danielle Irigoyen brings flowers to the victims of the Pulse nightclub shooting. “I’m very close to many of the people who go to Pulse. Pulse was a safe place for us all,” she sail.
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Investigators gather at the Pulse nightclub on Monday morning.
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Investigators set up at the Pulse nightclub.
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Family gather for victims at Beardall Senior Center in Orlandoon Monday.
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Friends of Shane Tomlinson, who was killed in the Pulse nightclub shooting, gather in prayer and remembrances in downtown Orlando on Monday. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
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Friends of Shane Tomlinson, including Richie Compton, left, and Erik Winger, right, gather in prayer and remembrances in downtown Orlando on Monday. Shane Tomlinson was killed killed in the Pulse nightclub shooting.
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Family and friends arrive at the Senior Center in Orlando as they await news on their loved ones on Monday. (Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times)
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Volunteers gather in prayer on Monday at the Senior Center in Orlando where they are there to help grieving family and friends of those killed and injured in the shooting at Pulse nightclub.
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FBI investigators in Orlando, Fla., look at the floor plans of Pulse nightclub as they gather on Monday morning to continue the investigation.
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People gather at Taylor Square in Sydney, Australia, to show solidarity with victims of the Orlando nightclub shooting.
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City Hall in Tel Aviv, Israel, is lit up in solidarity with Orlando’s shooting victims.
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New Zealand residents gather at Frank Kitts Park in Wellingtond to mourn victims of the Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando, Fla.
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A man lights a candle in Paris on June 12 to remember those slain and wounded in the Orlando nightclub shooting. (Rapahel Satter / Associated Press)
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New Zealand residents gather in Frank Kitts Park to mourn victims of the Orlando nightclub shooting.
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Residents gather at Joy Metropolitan Community Church near the Pulse nightclub in Orlando to mourn the mass shooting victims of the early morning attack on June 12, 2016.
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Johnpaul Vazquez, right, and his boyfriend Yazan Sale sit by Lake Eola, in downtown Orlando, thinking of those killed and injured.
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Judy Rettig, center, and Dave Hack, left, hug after a prayer service held at the Joy Meropolitan Community Church in Orlando.
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Zafar Basith prays at a vigil for the Orlando shooting victims at the Baitul Hameed Mosque in Chino.
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Raymond Braun, right, right, gets a hug after a vigil held in West Hollywood for the victims of the shooting at the nightclub in Orlando.
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Monte Dobbs and Jhoanna Galvez of Long Beach, comfort each other during a vigil service at the corner of La Cienega Blvd. and Santa Monica Blvd.
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Orlando, second from right, was at the nightclub and trapped for three hours in a bathroom. Orlando and family attend a vigil and church service held at Joy Meropolitan Community Church very close to Pulse nightclub.
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People hug in solaceafter a vigil and church service held at Joy Meropolitan Community Church very close to Pulse nightclub.
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Susan Stephens, right, gets a hug from Karen Castelloes before a vigil and prayer service is held at Joy Meropolitan Community Church very close to Pulse nightclub.
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Investigators view the site of the early morning mass shooting on June 12, 2016, at Pulse nightclub in Orlando.
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People hold signs in support of the Orlando shooting victims on Sunday.
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Kelvin Cobaris, a local clergyman, consoles Orlando city commissioner Patty Sheehan (right) and Terry DeCarlo, an Orlando gay-rights advocate, as they arrive on the scene near where at least 50 people were reportedly shot and killed in Orlando, Fla., Sunday, June 12, 2016.
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Aerial view of the shooting scene at Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla.
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A bomb disposal unit checks for explosives around the apartment building where shooting suspect Omar Mateen is believed to have lived on June 12, 2016 in Fort Pierce, Florida.
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Ray Rivera, a DJ at Pulse nightclub, is consoled by a friend outside of the Orlando Police Department after 50 people were killed at the club on Sunday.
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Orlando police officers outside of Pulse nightclub after a fatal shooting and hostage situation on Sunday.
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Terry DeCarlo, executive director of the LGBT Center of Central Florida, right, is comforted by an Orlando Police officer after a shooting involving multiple fatalities at a nightclub in Orlando, Fla. on Sunday.
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An aerial view of the shooting scene at Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla. (Red Huber / Orlando Sentinel)
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Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, center, and others have a moment of silence on June 12, 2016, in West Hollywood for the victims of the shooting in Orlando, Fla., that happened early that morning.
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Emergency personnel at Orlando Regional Medical Center wait with stretchers for the arrival of victims from the fatal nightclub shooting.
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A police officer stands guard outside the Orlando Regional Medical Center after a fatal shooting at nearby Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla., on Sunday.
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Law enforcement agencies and local city representatives speak at a news conference after 50 people were killed at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla.
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An Orange County (Fla.) Sheriff’s Department SWAT member arrives at Pulse nightclub.
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Orlando police direct family members away from the Pulse nightclub, where 50 people were killed.
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Jermaine Towns, left, and Brandon Shuford wait down the street from the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla. (Phelan M. Ebenhack / Associated Press)
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Bystanders wait down the street after a mass shooting at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla.
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The scene outside Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla., after the shooting early Sunday.
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An injured person is escorted out of the Pulse nightclub after a shooting rampage Sunday morning in Orlando, Fla.
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An injured man is escorted out of the Pulse nightclub after a shooting rampage Sunday morning in Orlando, Fla. A gunman with an assault-type rifle and a handgun opened fire inside a gay nightclub, killing at least 50 people before dying in a gunfight with SWAT officers, police said.
(Steven Fernandez / Associated Press) On Sunday morning, as families gathered for memorial services across the region, Atty. Gen. Loretta Lynch said the Justice Department would make public some conversations between hostage negotiators and the perpetrator of the deadly nightclub massacre.
The partial transcripts of three separate phone conversations set to be released will reveal Mateen discussing his motivations for the rampage and pledging allegiance to terrorist groups, Lynch said during appearances on Sunday news programs.
“We are trying to recreate the days, the weeks, the months of this killer’s life before the attack,” Lynch said on “Fox News Sunday.” “And we’re also asking people who had contact with him to come forward.”
Lynch said she would travel to Orlando this week to receive additional updates about what she called a “very aggressive investigation” into Mateen, as well as others who may be subject to criminal charges in connection with the killings. But she said it was too early to talk about who might be subject to investigation, including Mateen’s wife.
The transcripts will reveal Mateen’s stated allegiance to terrorist groups, but Lynch said no information indicated he was directed to commit the act by anyone overseas.
“But we do have information that shows that, over the course of time, he, like sadly too many individuals, was consuming radical jihadist information online and was becoming radicalized here in the United States,” she said on CBS’ “Face the Nation.”
“So we’re looking at all of those connections as well to determine, when did it happen and what was the point that led him to actually pick up that gun?”
In one of a number of church services commemorating the tragedy, Pastor Paul Valo of Christ Church of Orlando described the last week as a blur.
Speaking from the pulpit, he described some of the people he’d met — a weeping emergency response team member and a man suffering an anxiety attack amid the commotion — and told his congregation it’s impossible to make sense of insanity. Processing tragedy, he said, isn’t linear.
“Every person in this room is going to have to walk into restoration,” he said. “Away from fear.”
The church, located down the street from the nightclub where the shooting occurred, was transformed shortly afterward into a hub for donations and crisis counseling.
Some in the congregation during Sunday’s service cried softly; others clasped their hands and bowed their heads in prayer. Outside, a strong rain fell.
Times staff writers Gerber reported from Orlando and Wilber from Washington.
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UPDATES:
6:45 p.m.: The story was updated with additional details on the vigil.
5:46 p.m.: The story was updated with information about the evening vigil for victims of the nightclub shooting.
The story was originally published at 12:07 p.m.
