“We must stand up to this hate at every opportunity, to demonstrate to our community that acting on hate will not be tolerated.”Īmerica is changing faster than ever! Add Changing America to your Facebook or Twitter feed to stay on top of the news. Attorney Nick Brown for the Western District of Washington said Thursday in a statement. “Garcia endangered countless people who he did not know and who were simply trying to live their lives, solely because of his own hatred,” U.S. Weeks after the incident, he told a stranger that his intent in setting the fire was to trap and harm the people inside the building, the Justice Department said Thursday in a news release. “I think it’s wrong that we have a bunch of queers in our society,” Garcia told law enforcement officials.
Garcia, who was arrested just minutes after setting the fire, said he targeted the establishment because it had a sign outside that said “queer.” Kalvinn Garcia, 25, of Sedro Woolley, Wash., on Thursday admitted to setting fire to the contents of a dumpster in an alleyway behind Queer/Bar, a known LGBTQ+ nightclub and event space, in Seattle in 2020.
