Site of Colorado gay bar shooting ‘celebrated’ LGBTQ people

By JESSE BEDAYN and AMY FORLITI
Associated Press

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — In the mostly conservative city of Colorado Springs, Club Q has long been a go-to spot for members of the LGBTQ community — a safe space where many felt they could just be themselves. But that was shattered this weekend when a gunman entered the club as people were drinking and dancing, killing five people and injuring 25 others. As the community mourns the lives lost, many are also grieving because it happened in a place that has become a sanctuary for many longing to fit in. Stoney Roberts, a nonbinary trans person, says they came of age at Club Q, and it has been a place where LGBTQ people “can take a deep breath and you can be your authentic self.”