The stages of grief apply to communities as well. I live in the historic district of downtown Orlando, a mile from the nightclub as the crow flies. My doctor’s office, grocery story, coffee shop, bagel store and daughter’s high school are all within a few block radius of the worst massacre in the United States. Orlando is my home. We are all still in the first stage of grief of shock, mixed with horror, over the incidents that happened this past weekend. Here is what our neighborhood would like the world to know: the killer DOES NOT represents our community in ANY manner. In fact, his actions are in direct contrast to the way we live. We are traumatized by brutality of his actions and by the intolerance of his beliefs. Here are a few things about our area (this is not statistical, rather observational by someone who has lived in Orlando for over twenty years) that we wish others would know: We are a very diverse population. In our area, the demographics are about 1/3 Hispanic, 1/3

Source: Still in Shock: My Home, Orlando, Florida | The Exhausted Woman