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Mourners Gather At Stonewall Inn To Honor Orlando Shooting Victims

KELLY MCEVERS, HOST:

As the investigation continues into the Orlando shooter, people around the country are also gathering to mourn the victims and support the LGBT community. Many have been meeting at The Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village in New York.

Stonewall is considered the birthplace of the gay rights movement. It was the scene of riots in the late '60s, and it remains an important gathering place for members of the community. New York City's mayor and the state's governor will be speaking there soon. Jessica Gould of member station WNYC is there now. Thanks for being with us.

JESSICA GOULD, BYLINE: Hi. Thank you.

MCEVERS: So just tell us a little bit about Stonewall's place in New York. It's kind of become a gathering place in the best of times and the worst of times for the LGBT community, right?

GOULD: Absolutely. It's a place where people come together in struggle and in celebration. I was here almost exactly a year ago when there were spontaneous celebrations of the Supreme Court ruling for gay marriage - legalizing marriage. And there were flowers and rainbow flags and people, both gay and straight, with their children celebrating what they saw was a turning point.

MCEVERS: Right. That was - they saw it as place of celebration, as a place to sort of say that this was a moment for the movement. And now they've got this news out of Orlando. And they started gathering there again. What was that scene like?

I'm afraid we've actually lost Jessica Gould from member station WNYC. We will try to get back with her soon. And as we try to wait for her, we talk about - we're talking about The Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village in New York where New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio is expected to speak shortly. We will try to join up with her again soon. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

Jessica Gould