This morning my heart is heavy with grief. While we don’t yet know all the details of the tragedy unfolding in Orlando, it is an unspeakable act of violence-not only against one class of people, or one city, but against society as a whole.

As a mayor charged with keeping a city safe, I can’t help but feel we are failing to address a societal ill, one where a person can senselessly kill so many with nothing more than a motive and a gun–and that we fail to learn lessons from these repeated tragedies.

I am very grateful to the heroes of law enforcement who responded, put themselves in harm’s way, and undoubtedly saved lives.

As an openly gay woman, I can’t help but view this tragedy as an attack on all people who identify as LGBTQ –a hate crime perpetrated to silence our community during the month of Pride, a time when we openly celebrate who we are and the joy of self acceptance.

As a mother, I am simply heartbroken, devastated at the thought of the family and friends who have lost a loved one in this tragic event and for those who endured injury and the trauma caused by this one individual.

Today my prayers are with the victims of this attack, their loved ones, the City of Orlando, and the entire LGBTQ community. We must learn from this tragedy and resolve to take action to prevent this from happening again. Let us all respond today with peace and acts of kindness. We can make this world a better place to live and we will.