The federal government is warning U.S. citizens traveling internationally during LGBTQ Pride Month in June to be vigilant, citing concerns that the events could be targeted by extremist groups.
The State Department in a travel consultancyreleased Friday, said U.S. citizens participating in Pride Month celebrations abroad should “exercise increased caution” over concerns about possible terrorist attacks, demonstrations and other violent actions “against U.S. citizens and interests.”
“The Department of State is aware of the growing potential for violence inspired by foreign terrorist organizations against LGBTQI+ people and events,” the department said in its alert, which urges American travelers to “be alert” in places frequented by tourists, including “places frequented by LGBTQI+ people.”
A State Department spokesperson declined to comment on whether the statement was preceded by a specific event or threat made against the LGBTQ community.
“The U.S. Department of State has no higher priority than the safety of U.S. citizens abroad,” the spokesperson said in an emailed statement. “We take seriously our commitment to providing U.S. citizens with clear, timely and reliable information about every country in the world so they can make informed travel decisions.”
The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security this month equally warned that foreign terrorist organizations, or FTOs, could target the country’s Pride Month celebrations.
“FTO’s efforts to commit or inspire violence against holiday celebrations, including Pride celebrations or related venues, are compounded by the current heightened threat environment in the United States and other Western countries,” the agencies said in a joint public service announcement. .
“FTOs and their supporters have promoted anti-LGBTQIA+ rhetoric and targeted LGBTQIA+-related events or locations for attacks.”
Authorities cited “ISIS messages” from February 2023 that focused on anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and “united against the growth and promotion of the LGBTQIA+ community.”
This year will also mark the eighth anniversary of the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando, Florida, the agencies said, noting that “following the Pulse shooting, pro-ISIS messages praised this attack as one of the highest-profile attacks in Western countries. ”. , and FTO supporters celebrated it.”
Authorities also referenced the arrest of three “supposed ISIS sympathizers” last June for attempting to attack a Pride parade in Vienna, Austria.
Pride celebrations in recent years have faced increasing threats of violence from far-right extremist groups.
A Kansas man was arrested last year and accused of threatening to bomb a Nashville Pride event, and in 2022, 31 members of the white supremacist group Patriot Front were arrested near a Pride celebration in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, on conspiracy charges. for the tumult.
At least 145 incidents of LGBTQ-motivated hate and extremism were recorded last June by GLAAD and the Anti-Defamation League, including the murder of a woman at a Texas gas station by a man who allegedly directed a homophobic slur at her.
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