Pride At Work Statement on the Hate-Motivated Murder of 2 Men Outside a Tucson Gay Bar
On September 2nd Desi Navarro spoke on behalf of Pride At Work at the Tucson vigil for Vinny Siqueiros and Cam Capara. Desi is a Pride At Work member and Vice President of CWA Local 7000 who holds several other state and national labor leadership roles.
Pride At Work and 2SLGBTQIA+ union members across the country stand in solidarity with the Tucson and Arizona queer community as they grapple with the devastating murder of Vincent Siqueiros and Cameron Capara. These beloved men were targeted simply because they were outside a gay bar. Our hearts go out to Vinny and Cam’s family and friends, who should not have to grieve this loss and injustice.
No one should have to live in fear or danger because of who we love or who we are. We all deserve the freedom to live and work as our true selves, and move through the world with safety and respect.
Unfortunately, the murder of Vinny and Cam is not an isolated incident or random act of violence. The shooter had a list of more LGBTQ-associated businesses in his pocket. And every day right now queer and trans people in the United States face a climate of rapidly increasing hate and bigotry in our workplaces, schools, and communities.
This environment has been intentionally cultivated by extremist politicians and their billionaire backers who seek to distract the working class from their real agenda: lining their own pockets while the rest of us struggle to keep a roof over our heads. They use fearmongering against immigrants and trans people while passing bills and signing executive orders to make our healthcare more expensive, take food away from hungry kids, and bust unions.
But union members are not falling for it. From Stonewall to Selma to our unions, we know that the power of everyday people joining together and protecting each other is how we secure freedom for us all. In honor of Vinny, Cam, and everyone lost to homophobic and transphobic violence, we recommit ourselves to fighting for a country where everyone is free to be themselves and thrive.
