LGBT Muslims ostracized following Orlando shooting tragedy

Gay Muslims fear backlash in the aftermath of the Orlando nightclub shooting that happened Sunday, June 12 at the height of Islamaphobia and anti-LGBT sentiments.

Sunday's tragedy is not just the worst mass shooting in the U.S. history but also the worst attack against the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community in America, according to Reuters.

After an Afghan-American gunman with Islamic State sympathy attacked the Pulse gay nightclub and killed 49 and injured 53, several Muslim groups quickly denounced the attack and expressed solidarity with the LGBT community. On the other hand, politicians like Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump responded by blaming the Muslims for not reporting the gunman and reiterating his proposal to ban Muslim immigrants.

"When I heard about the shootings, the first thing I thought was, please don't let it be a Muslim," Amina Abdul Jalil, a gay Muslim, said Tuesday during a vigil in Atlanta for the Orlando victims, as reported by NBC News.

Los Angeles Times quoted the rising cases of hate crimes exposing Muslim bigotry in the country as a result of Islamic terroristic attacks. Hate crimes against American Muslims rose to 481 cases in 2015 from 154 the previous year.

Orlando's mass shooting tragedy also highlighted the Islamic faith's denunciation of homosexuality.

Representative for Muslim Alliance for Sexual and Gender Diversity, Tynan Powell, told Reuters, "There are Muslims who believe that the Koran forbids homosexuality, just as there are Christians who believe the Bible does."

A study made by Pew Research Center in 2015, as reported by the Associated Press, indicates 42 percent Muslims living in the U.S. support same-sex marriages while Christians rated a bit higher at 44 percent, Mormons at 40 percent, and Evangelicals the lowest at 28 percent.

One gay Muslim man originating from Afghanistan, who has requested to remain anonymous, recalled he was told off during a vigil for Orlando victims at University of Minnesota on Tuesday, "This is not the right time or place for you."

"Even my grieving was questioned because of my identity," he said.

Mona Siam, a lesbian Muslim who left her country Jordan to find freedom in America, also said she feels that every part of her identity is being attacked.

In light of all these, 50 LGBTQ groups on Monday espoused for unity instead of anti-Muslim rhetoric.

They stated, "We know what it looks like and feels like to be scapegoated and isolated in the midst of a crisis."