Erasing the Rainbow: The Battle Over Pulse, Memory, and the Politics of Remembrance
Written by Peter Boykin on August 26, 2025
Erasing the Rainbow:
The Battle Over Pulse, Memory, and the Politics of Remembrance
#GoRightNews Shared by Peter Boykin
American Political Commentator / Citizen Journalist / Activist / Constitutionalist for Liberty
Erasing the Rainbow:
The Battle Over Pulse, Memory, and the Politics of Remembrance
In October 2017, the City of Orlando dedicated a rainbow-themed pedestrian crossing on Esther Street, directly in front of the Pulse nightclub. This was not just decoration. It was the result of a petition signed by thousands and represented a living memorial to the 49 lives cut short during the Pulse tragedy of June 2016. For survivors, families, and the broader LGBTQ community, it became a public marker of remembrance planted in the very heart of the city where the violence took place. It was both symbol and sanctuary, a reminder that the names of the lost would not fade into silence.
Eight years later, in August 2025, that symbol was suddenly and quietly erased. Under the banner of the so-called “Safe Roads Initiative,” the Florida Department of Transportation removed the rainbow crosswalk overnight, citing traffic codes and the claim that non-standard road markings distract drivers. No public forum. No engagement with families. Just a coat of gray paint where once a community found meaning.
The reaction was swift and fierce. Activists, residents, and community leaders, including State Senator Carlos Guillermo Smith and Representative Anna Eskamani, rallied back to the site. With chalk in their hands, they restored the rainbow themselves, line by line, refusing to let the erasure stand. Their message was clear and defiant: We will not be erased.
For many, this act of removal was never about road safety. It was about politics. It was about control. It was about erasing a visible reminder of a community’s grief and resilience because it made some uncomfortable. And that is why the blowback reached beyond Orlando. The act struck a nerve across the country, as people recognized the broader implications: if the state can erase a memorial to 49 murdered Americans with a single coat of paint, what else can it erase under the guise of “safety” or “policy”?
This was never just paint on pavement. It was a piece of collective memory, an act of resilience in the face of horror. The rainbow crosswalk marked the place where remembrance lived. Its removal felt like stripping away a layer of history, not only Orlando’s history but America’s history.
The battle over that crosswalk is not about traffic rules. It is about how we remember, how we honor, and whether politics will be allowed to dictate whose grief is respected and whose stories are forgotten.
Pulse Timeline: Memory, Resilience, and Erasure
June 12, 2016
At 2:02 a.m., a gunman opened fire inside Pulse nightclub in Orlando during Latin Night. Forty-nine lives were taken, dozens injured. At the time, it was the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history.
October 2017
The City of Orlando installed a rainbow crosswalk on Esther Street outside Pulse, after a petition signed by thousands. It became a community-led symbol of remembrance for the 49 angels.
2018–2022
Annual vigils, memorial events, and “Orlando United Day – A Day of Love and Kindness” kept the legacy alive. The crosswalk stood as both a tribute and a visible reminder of the tragedy.
Late 2023
The City of Orlando purchased the Pulse site. Leaders pledged a thoughtful and collaborative Memorial Engagement Process to create a permanent tribute, working directly with survivors and families.
August 2025
Under the “Safe Roads Initiative,” the Florida Department of Transportation quietly painted over the rainbow crosswalk, citing non-standard markings and safety concerns. The removal sparked immediate backlash and outrage.
Aftermath
Residents, activists, and leaders returned to the site and restored the rainbow with chalk, declaring, “We will not be erased.” The controversy reignited national debate over politics, memory, and who gets to decide how tragedies are remembered.
Pulse Was More Than a Club
The City of Orlando purchased the Pulse site in late 2023 and launched a Memorial Engagement Process that is both thoughtful and collaborative. This effort is not just about building something permanent, it is about anchoring truth, grief, and resilience in the shape of a tribute that will last for generations.
Pulse was never only a nightclub. It was a sanctuary. It was a chosen family for countless LGBTQIA+ people who needed a safe space to belong. Inside its walls, people laughed, loved, and lived freely without fear of judgment.
That sanctuary was shattered on June 12, 2016, at 2:02 a.m., when nearly 300 people gathered for Latin Night were suddenly engulfed in terror. It became the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history at the time: 49 lives lost, dozens injured, and a city, a nation, and the world left grieving.
Survivors and families have given us voices that keep the memory alive:
“I was shot three times and survived by the grace of God.” — Angel Colon, Pulse survivor
“Before Pulse, I could no longer hide who I am.” — Angel Santiago, survivor
“On the day of my wedding my son did my hair. He wanted me to look ‘spectacular.’” — Magda Soto, mother of victim Luis Conde
“I have a hard time sleeping. I don’t take anything for granted anymore.” — Ray Rivera, DJ at Pulse that night
These voices remind us that Pulse was never just a building. It was joy, friendship, belonging, and family and the tragedy ripped through every one of those bonds.
Yet out of the darkness, Orlando chose unity. Families, survivors, first responders, and city leaders created Orlando United, a movement of compassion, resilience, and defiance against hate. Each year, Orlando United Day — A Day of Love and Kindness keeps that legacy alive with vigils, community service, and remembrance.
The forthcoming memorial at the Pulse site will not just recall lives lost. It will serve as a sacred space for reflection, healing, and hope. It will tell the world that Orlando, and America at its best, refuse to let hatred erase the power of chosen family, community, and love.
Orlando United
Tragedies often divide communities. But not in Orlando. In the days and weeks after the Pulse massacre, when the shock and grief were still raw, families of the victims, survivors, first responders, trauma teams, city leaders, and neighbors made a choice. They chose unity. They chose to stand together and to show the world what Orlando United truly meant.
That unity became more than just a slogan. It was a movement, a symbol of resilience in the face of unimaginable loss. Vigils, memorials, and acts of remembrance spread from the streets of Orlando to cities across the country, carrying a message that love, and solidarity were stronger than hate and violence.
The City of Orlando has pledged to continue that legacy by working directly with survivors and family members through a Memorial Engagement Process. The goal is clear: to create a space of solemn reflection where the 49 angels will be forever honored. It will be a place where victims’ families, survivors, first responders, and the community can come together not only to remember, but to heal.
This future memorial is envisioned not simply as a marker of grief, but as a lasting symbol of inclusion, resilience, and community strength. It will honor the memory of those lost, uplift the courage of the survivors, and provide a place of education and reflection for generations to come.
More than that, it will stand as a reminder to the nation and the world that Orlando and America at its best remain inclusive communities where every person is welcomed, where unity overcomes division, and where the voices of the lost are never silenced by politics, bureaucracy, or paint rollers.
What is Orlando United?
Orlando United became the rallying cry in the aftermath of the Pulse nightclub tragedy on June 12, 2016. It symbolized the unity of a city refusing to be torn apart by hate. Families of the victims, survivors, first responders, trauma teams, faith leaders, and neighbors came together to grieve, to heal, and to show the world that love and solidarity would always outshine violence.
The phrase lives on as a reminder of resilience and inclusivity. It is now the guiding spirit behind Orlando’s official efforts to build a permanent Pulse Memorial, ensuring that the legacy of the 49 lives lost and the strength of the community that stood together afterward will never be forgotten.
You can read more about the City of Orlando’s commitment and the Pulse Memorial process here:
Orlando United – City of Orlando Pulse Memorial
For More Info: Florida Gov. DeSantis Erased a Rainbow Memorial to 49 Murder Victims and Called It “Safety.” Are You Okay with That? – Go Right News
Did They Erase a Memorial to 49 Murdered Americans Just to Score Political Points? #GoRight with Peter Boykin Commentary:
This was never about a crosswalk. It was about whether the memory of 49 Americans can be erased with a coat of gray paint. When government officials claim it is about “safety” while covering up a symbol tied directly to one of the darkest nights in modern history, the motive looks a lot more like politics dressed up as policy.
And what has surprised me most is not only the move by the state, but the response from some who should know better. Even inside Gays for Trump, even from people who claim to stand with this movement, I hear sneers and insults. I hear people dismissing this as “crybaby liberal nonsense” or “lingering drama.” I hear the same tired line “it’s just a crosswalk” as if 49 lives lost in one of the darkest chapters of our community could ever be reduced to just paint on the road.
That criticism is aimed at me personally. Some call me “liberal” for even raising this issue, as if honoring the dead is somehow controversial. Let me make something clear. I was never “on the left.” So, stop pretending you know my story. You don’t know a damn thing about me.
I founded Gays for Trump. I built this movement long before Trump even secured the nomination in 2015. Back then, it was not popular. It was not safe. It was not convenient. I put my name, my livelihood, and my career on the line when others were still hiding in the shadows. I lost jobs, I lost friends, I lost my career, but I never backed down.
This group wasn’t built on indoctrination or virtue signaling. It was built on standing for freedom, for Trump, and for the Constitution. History is already written: Gays for Trump was here first. We grew after the Pulse tragedy, when thousands of gay Americans woke up to the reality that the Democrat Party was not protecting them.
Supporting gay constitutional rights is not liberal. It is American. And if something as simple as a rainbow flag or a crosswalk memorial for the 49 murdered at Pulse offends you so much that you lash out with slurs against the very people who built this movement, then you don’t know our history at all.
This is the test. Do we honor the dead, or do we erase them for convenience? Because if a rainbow tied to the deaths of 49 Americans can be painted over, what else will be erased tomorrow? What other truths, symbols, and memories will be scrubbed away because they make someone uncomfortable?
America should never be in the business of memory-holing its own history. Not when 49 angels still deserve to be remembered. Not when that night reshaped our community, our politics, and our movement.
So here’s where we stand. This group will not change course. It has always been about defending the rights of gay Americans in the Republican Party and in this Constitutional Republic. If you can stand with that, you are welcome here. If you cannot, then you are free to leave.
Because this is not about paint. It is about refusing to forget.
Sources and Links
- Trump Administration Removes Rainbow Crosswalk Honoring 49 Victims Murdered at Pulse Nightclub (People)
- Florida paints over Pulse rainbow crosswalk without warning (Washington Post)
- DeSantis Painted Over Pulse’s Pride Crosswalk. Protestors Restored It Twice (Teen Vogue)
- AP Coverage on Pulse Crosswalk Removal
- Axios Tampa Bay on Florida Rainbow Crosswalks
DeSantis Painted Over Pulse: Did He Just Erase 49 Lives for Politics?
Governor Ron DeSantis ordered the removal of Orlando’s rainbow crosswalk at Pulse, a site created to honor the 49 lives lost in the 2016 nightclub massacre. Branded as part of a “Safe Roads” initiative, the move was carried out quietly overnight, stripping away a memorial that had stood for nearly a decade. For survivors, families, and LGBTQ conservatives alike, the action was more than just paint being scraped from the pavement it was the state erasing a piece of history tied to one of America’s darkest nights.
The backlash was immediate. Local leaders, activists, and residents returned to the site with chalk to restore the rainbow by hand, declaring “We will not be erased.” To many, the decision had little to do with safety and everything to do with politics. The controversy now raises a bigger question: if a memorial to 49 murdered Americans can be painted over in the name of “policy,” what else can be erased?
#GoRight, #Pulse, #OrlandoUnited, #WeWillNotBeErased, #GaysForTrump, #ConstitutionalRights, #NeverForgetPulse, #StopTheErasure, #Pulse49, #StandForRemembrance
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