A gunman targeted Tucson’s LGBTQ+ community. A thousand Arizonans answered with love

A vigil for two gay men killed in a hate crime outside an Arizona gay bar drew around 1,000 mourners.

The Wednesday gathering at Tucson’s Catalina Park honored Vincent Anthony Siqueiros and Cameron Davis Capara, who were fatally shot outside the gay bar Venture-N. Police said Ousman Ceesay, who had no previous connection to the men, carried out a targeted attack motivated by hatred of the LGBTQ+ community. Ceesay died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, authorities said. Police said he was carrying a list of several LGBTQ+-associated businesses and that investigators found a note expressing anti-LGBTQ+ sentiments.

Family members of the victims said LGBTQ+ people should be able to live openly without fear of hateful attacks, according to Phoenix public radio station KJZZ.

Related: Gunman kills 2 at Arizona gay bar with other LGBTQ+ venues on apparent hit list

“That demands something of each and every one of us, because hate does not begin with a gun. It begins much earlier,” said Kate Márquez, Siqueiros’ sister. “Our rhetoric matters, the jokes matter, the words we excuse matters, silence matters, and the way we love people matters.”

Capara’s father, Jeff Capara, remembered his son’s compassion and the work he might have gone on to do.

“He cared deeply about people in Tucson, or those thousands of miles away. People who were marginalized, overlooked or misunderstood,” he said. “I wish I had more time with Cameron, I wish I could have seen where his life would have taken him … the photographs he would have taken, what people he would have helped, and what more he would have done with his enormous heart.”

Capara’s friends also shared memories of him. His best friend, Alli Lee, told PBS affiliate AZPM about the 33-year-old shooting victim’s passion for sharing stories with the world.

Related: LGBTQ+ Arizonans gather in mourning and defiance after deadly gay bar shooting

“I was always so proud of Cameron being there out on the streets at every protest and rally and standing up for those that were the victims of hate,” she said. “He would never just bury his head in the sand or live with the duality. He was so full of empathy and lived without hypocrisy.”

Those who knew the two men through the Venture-N community said both men lived life on their own terms.

“They were genuinely who they were,” said Brian King, a friend of both men. “They didn't try to be anybody else, they didn't conform, they didn't kiss ass. They liked who they were and that's why people liked them, because they were comfortable in their skins — you know when somebody isn't, especially in a place like this.”