Orlando Nightclub Massacre
On the 12th of June, 2016, the most horrific event in American history unfolded in Orlando, Florida. At 2am, American born husband and father, Omar Mateen, opened fire with an AK-15 assault rifle and 9mm handgun inside the popular LGBT Nightclub, Pulse. In the midst of the chaos, 53 people were injured and 49 innocent lives taken, resulting in not only the deadliest mass shooting in American history, but also the worst terrorist attack on American soil since September 11, 2001. Merely hours after the news of the tragedy hit the web, communities all over the world began holding vigils and rallies in honour of the victims of this brutal attack. Celebrities and politicians have also lent their voices to the cause, some…show more content… When his close friends and family were interviewed by the media, they reported that he was very quiet and reserved, with no intolerances towards the LGBT community. However, numerous sources report a different side to Omar Mateen. A former co-worker of Mateen's, who worked as a security guard for G4S, a private security company, reported Mr. Mateen having made comments on his desire to kill people. These comments resulted in the unnamed co-worker reporting Mr. Mateen to the FBI, an investigation ensued. With an investigation underway, many leads on suspected terrorist ties were explored, but no there were never any charges on the grounds of lack of evidence. What is most disturbing about Mr. Mateen is not his simple, "alleged" desire to kill, but how he treated his first wife, Sitora Yusufiy. The Huardia reported that, shortly after Ms. Yusufiy's marriage to Omar Mateen, she was brutally abused, witnessed her husband angrily fight with his parents and was even held 'hostage', prevented from contacting friends or family. She described his descent from what was a man "who loved to joke and loved to have fun" to "deeply disturbed" and "traumatised". Now, how is it possible that a man like Omar Mateen, a mentally unstable, former suspected terrorist and wife beater, was able to buy not one, but two guns without raising any red flags? Of course no one could have known what he had planned to do, but it is just sickening how easy it was for someone like him to commit such a
