The news about the shooting was the first thing I saw when I woke up on Sunday. Someone who is very close to me—someone I actually call my son—had posted about it on Facebook, and I couldn’t believe what was going on.

I’m a native Floridian and lived in Orlando for 10 years, when I was still struggling to accept myself as a gay man. People I know were at Pulse that night. Some of my friends were held hostage. They had to climb through the air conditioning system to get out.

Keith Harris is a staff member at AFSC Atlanta's office, providing administrative support to the South region. 

The horrific violence of the Orlando mass shooting has appalled and saddened people of good will throughout the United States and the world. The American Friends Service Committee’s South Region stands in solidarity with all who mourn this tragic event. Like everyone else touched by this, we send our thoughts and prayers on behalf of the dead, the wounded, the fearful, and the grieving.

In 2013, AFSC developed an alternative Quaker vision for U.S. foreign policy called ”shared security” with sister organization, Friends Committee on National Legislation. Since then, key peace-building partners around the globe have adopted and promoted this concept to address conflict in a world more interdependent than ever.

Immediately after the Orlando shooting at the Pulse night club that killed 50, Rev. William Barber, II posted this powerful statement on his personal Facebook page. I asked if AFSC could publish it, and he generously said, "Yes." - Lucy

Hate harbors deceit in his heart.

The Old Testament teaches: "Whoever hates disguises himself with his lips and harbors deceit in his heart." (Proverbs 26:24, ESV)

Hate your brother, walk in darkness.

As we mourn the tragic deaths of the 50 people killed at Pulse nightclub in Orlando, writers, thinkers, and activists help us make sense of our grief and honor our resilience and resistance.

1. Statement from the Muslim Alliance for Sexual and Gender Diversity on the shooting at Pulse in Orlando, Florida

Last month, it came to light that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was planning a series of raids aimed at Central American mothers and children who had recently arrived in the United States, many of whom were fleeing violence in their home countries. These raids are just the latest in a long series of aggressive immigration enforcement policies that have torn families apart and spread fear throughout immigrant communities across the U.S.

Sandra Sanchez, director of AFSC's Iowa Immigrants Voice Program, is an immigrant from Mexico and has lived in Iowa since 1991. She worked in the private sector in Mexico City for 11 years. Her immigrant experience prompted her to shift interests to social justice issues. Mrs. Sanchez worked for the Des Moines School District and the Des Moines Family Violence Center before she became the director of the Immigrants Voice Program for AFSC in 1995.