In the Media

We began organizing in 2019, after we learned that Pulse Nightclub owner Barbara Poma would be paid $150,000 in her role as CEO of the OnePULSE Foundation—the nonprofit she started after the mass shooting at her business. It was through reporting in the Orlando Sentinel that we also learned that Poma was selling the site of the mass shooting (which she owns) as a tourist attraction in order to receive a $10M tourism tax grant from Orange County. This is unethical, especially when she is named in an ongoing lawsuit brought by shooting victims alleging security negligence, premise liability, and the illegal sale of the nightclub property where the interim memorial is currently located. Newer reporting shows that Barbara Poma, who refused to sell the nightclub property to the City of Orlando for a public memorial, is now in talks to sell the property to her own nonprofit for millions of dollars.

With all that has happened over the years, we thought it was vital to create an archive of news articles that paint the true story of the aftermath of the Pulse shooting, focusing on efforts to cover up the truth, re-write history, and turn mass murder into a $100M capital campaign.

A disturbing number of people do not believe us. This is not surprising, since there are so many conspiracy theorists out there surrounding mass shootings and due to the fact that Barbara Poma (through the OnePULSE Foundation) has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars over the years to perpetuate narratives of love vs. hate, while falsely showcasing herself as a victim of the nightclub shooting and a voice for Orlando's LGBQ+ community. She is neither.

Through this page, we wanted to show that a lot has been covered by the media and IS in fact true. There is still quite a bit that has not been investigated and we have tried to fill in the gaps through our own research in the public records, which has resulted in our exposé and ongoing social media posts (follow us on Twitter and Instagram).

We continue to demand:

Barbara Poma stops her efforts to personally profit off the mass shooting through her nonprofit organization by completely resigning from the organization (stepping down as CEO is completely inadequate);
The OnePULSE Foundation completely stop its efforts to build a privatized museum and invests instead in the immediate construction of a permanent memorial;
The OnePULSE Foundation shifts its efforts and builds a public memorial that honors the 49 murdered, and NOT a privately-owned memorial with security and visitor tracking;
Immediately remove the gift shop from the Pulse Nightclub property (this is completely disrespectful and exploitative); and,
Barbara and Rosario Poma, along with the City of Orlando, are held accountable for the unpermitted renovations and code violations at the Pulse Nightclub that hindered the escape and rescue of shooting victims.
Mechanisms are to be put into place to help victims and survivors of this shooting with resources, financial and otherwise. Despite what the OnePULSE Foundation claims, these do not currently exist. Victims seeking help from the OnePULSE Foundation are turned away to organizations that do not provide the support needed.
The role of "keeper for the story" is returned to the Black and Latinx victims of the shooting and taken away from Barbara Poma, who is not an actual victim and was on vacation in Mexico when Latinx LGBTQ+ people were being slaughtered at her nightclub. The story of Pulse is not for a wealthy White woman to claim and retell.

We hope that the following news articles will (a) provide further proof to those who do not believe or understand what's documented in public records or who do not have access to local reporting, (b) help provide historical context to how these events have unfolded since June 12, 2016, and (c) show that the struggle for justice is ongoing (even years after the shooting).