A cadre of business owners, nonprofit executives, journalists and activists from San Diego’s LGBT community met with Mayor Kevin Faulconer and Chief of Police Shelley Zimmerman within 48 hours following the mass shooting in Orlando, now almost two weeks ago, to discuss security.
“The police department, our community members, our media; we all have a role to play to make sure we get accurate information out there,” Zimmerman told the crowd gathered around the mayor’s conference table inside City Hall. “Because the last thing we want to have is information that goes out that just increases the fear and increases the concern that isn’t accurate.”
Zimmerman said and the mayor reiterated, there are those who wish to do harm to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, as was made devastatingly clear in the early-morning hours of June 12 in Florida.
Faulconer told local LGBT-community leaders that the saying, “if you see something, say something” cannot be repeated enough and should not be thought of merely as a slogan.
“We have one goal,” the mayor said. “A safe environment for everybody.”
Striking a somber tone, Faulconer put previously scheduled Monday-morning commitments on hold to address the meeting of LGBT-community leaders.
“Obviously, the tragedy, the hate crime, the terror that took place in Orlando is why we’re here today,” Faulconer said. “I think that it’s important that we continue to stay united as a community.”
Saying that he had consulted with longtime activist, City Commissioner Nicole Murray Ramirez immediately after the shooting in Orlando took 49 lives inside Pulse Nightclub about how San Diego’s officialdom might work within the local LGBT community; Faulconer zeroed in on next month’s Pride festivities.
“One of the things we particularly wanted to focus on is what we are doing and what we are going to be doing here both in the short term and the longer term as we look toward Pride to make sure we have a safe environment and that we are always doing everything that we need to be doing as a city to protect our entire community with particular emphasis and focus on our LGBT community, and our bars and our nightclubs and our restaurants,” said Faulconer.
Councilman Todd Gloria addressed LGBT business owners who rely on customers from the LGBT community who might be worried about a negative impact resulting from people staying home instead of going out to spend money because they fear Orlando-style attacks.
“We want to make sure we’re being responsive to relevant events,” Gloria said. “I think it’s important in talking to friends who are a little bit scared—they’re on edge and they’re staying home. And, for a lot of the business owners around this table, you’re very important to Council District 3 and to the whole city; and I want to make sure that your businesses are not impacted by this. I think the message has to get out that if folks are staying home, the bad guys are winning.”
Asked by San Diego LGBT Weekly if her statement that the San Diego Police Department would have a “significant presence” at this year’s LGBT Pride parade and festival meant that there would be more officers at the events this year versus 2015, Chief Zimmerman said that it would be counterproductive to announce her department’s policing tactics and strategy prior to the event.
However, said Zimmerman, there will be a law enforcement presence “that you can see, and that you can’t see.”
Chief Zimmerman said she and her command staff are closely engaged with other law enforcement agencies throughout the region and around the country, with which SDPD is working to prevent terrorist attacks.
“We have a very good network of major city chiefs,” Zimmerman said. “If something happens in one part of the country, we all start making phone calls because we don’t know if something is coordinated or not.”
Zimmerman said there is no specific threat to San Diego. Nevertheless, as many local residents and business owners have noticed, especially in Hillcrest and adjacent environs, there has been a greater visibility of resources on the streets and sidewalks during the past week-and-a-half.
“We’re providing increased officers especially in the LGBT areas,” said the chief. “We have additional officers not just in vehicles, but cars parked in certain areas in the community, officers on bicycles; we have officers on foot. You’ve seen a lot more foot patrols that are out there.”
Zimmerman declined to say if there would be an end date to the increased police presence in the LGBT community. She did say that a special phone number to report potential terrorist threats may be in the works. In the meantime, residents and business owners should feel free to report suspicious activity by calling 911.
