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US Navy awards heroism medal to sailor who stopped Club Q mass shooting [1]

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Date: 2023-10-09  

Naval Petty Officer Thomas James was recently awarded the US Navy and Marine Corps Medal, called the “highest non-combat decoration the Navy can award for heroism,” for helping stop the horrific mass shooting at Club Q in Colorado Springs late last year.

Along with Army veteran Richard Fierro, James charged the shooter and ripped the AR-15 out of his hands while several drag queens stomped on his face, leaving high-heeled shaped bruises as Fierro and James restrained the shooter.

In a press release from the Navy, James’ action was called “an extraordinary reaction to a deplorable and devastating event” by Rear Admiral Scott Robertson. In addition James gave up his ambulance ride so another victim could be transported to hospital.

From LGBTQ Nation:

When asked by Rear Adm. Robertson why he did what he did, James simply responded “I wanted to buy time for my friends. I wanted to protect my community.” In a statement issued from the hospital where he was recovering from injuries sustained in the attack, James said, “I simply wanted to save the family I found. If I had my way, I would shield everyone I could from the nonsensical acts of hate in the world, but I am only one person.”

In a nation being driven insane by right wing hatred for the LGBTQ+ community, Thomas James and Richard Fierro exemplify heroism by selflessly putting their bodies and their own safety on the line for their community. Both men were honored by Governor Jared Polis in January, and Thomas James remains in hospital recovering from his injuries to this very day.

This queer veteran salutes them both.

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