Dominick Pupa recently posted an extremely personal and poetic LGBT response to the Orlando Pulse shooting. The post was liked and shared on Facebook thousands of times until it was removed from the social network for “violating community standards.”

Although the post is no longer available on its original platform, we think it’s important to share the enlightening message. It all comes down to how we treat the targeted attacks in this country. Remember when certain conservatives decided to call the Charleston Church Shooting an attack on faith instead of a racially motivated attack? Well, a similar phenomenon is currently happening. There are certain GOP members who refuse to call this a hate crime and prefer to call it a terrorist attack on Americans.

Yes, this was an act of terrorism, but let’s not forget that this was a gay club that was attacked on a Latin-themed night. As one nation, we need to come together and stand up for those who are personally attacked, because at the end of the day, we are all Americans. Take a look at the post below and let us know your thoughts.

“Us gays.

We make you look prettier.

We dress you for your important occasions.

We polish up your neighborhoods until we get priced out of them.

We plan and attend your weddings even though you take vows to an entity that hates us.

We are involved in every movie you see.

We are involved in every TV show you watch.

We are involved in every song you listen to – even the homophobic ones.

We teach your children without having to tell you it’s us.

We protect your communities without having to tell you it’s us.

We nurse you back to health without having to tell you it’s us.

We clean your gutters, paint your houses and mow your lawns without having to tell you it’s us.

We fix your pipes without having to tell you it’s us, even though you let us know what bathroom we can use.

We govern your citizens – sometimes openly, sometimes only until we’re involved in a scandal after years of spewing homophobic rhetoric.

We are on every, single one of the sports teams you root for, but are usually hesitant to say we’re there because we don’t want s**t thrown at us on the playing field.

We are at the root of every cue you take in life – even those of you who wish us dead.

We fight and die on your battlefields without letting you know it’s us – and until recently, we weren’t even allowed to let you know.

We got rid of DOMA.

We won the right to marry, which was already guaranteed to us, but we just had to work harder than you.

And now, as though we don’t have enough on our plate, we will absolutely be the ones to fix up your abhorrent f**king gun laws.

Watch it happen, and marvel.

Because that’s what we do.

We clean up your messes.

Without the guarantee of safety and respect in return.

Can you imagine doing ALL of that work without DECENCY as a reward?

So don’t tell me I have to view #PulseOrlando as an attack on America instead of an attack on gay people.

Because we’re not Americans when you call us f*****s, we’re not Americans when you legally fire us, we’re not Americans when you kill trans people, we’re not Americans when you deny us adoption rights, we’re not Americans when you say nasty s**t to us when we’re holding hands on the street (and yeah, we do hear you) we’re not Americans when you deny us marriage licenses or a simple wedding cake with our names on it.

In all of those circumstances we’re just gay people, and being an American doesn’t matter.

So, out of respect for everyone who fought and died before me, I’m going to take a few days to mourn as a gay man before I mourn as an American.

And then after that, you can resume telling me I have to be at war with people I don’t know, even though I’ve been at war with my own countrymen my entire f**king life.

Be happy you’re at war with ISIS. Because you would lose a war against us.

Oh, and you’re welcome in advance for the gun thing. Like always.”

— Dominick Pupa 06.13.16