SACRAMENT, CA (KOVR/CNN) – Sacramento's LGBT community is reacting to inflammatory comments from a local pastor about the massacre in Orlando.
Just hours after the rampage which left 49 people dead, the pastor was caught on video appearing to praise the attack.
"We don't need to do anything to help. As far as I'm concerned, Orlando is a little bit safer tonight," said Roger Jimenez, of Verity Baptist Church.
The video of the Sacramento pastor was uploaded to YouTube
"As Christians, should we not be mourning the deaths of these 50 vile perverted predators," Jimenez said.
Sandrea Nelson is not sure how to react to what Jimenez said. He is pride director of the Davis-Phoenix Coalition, and he also grew up Baptist.
"He's not a man of God. He is not teaching religion," Nelson said.
He said in all his years of attending church, no pastor ever spoke of inequality.
"I wish the government would round them all up and put them up against a firing wall, and blow their brains out," Jimenez said on the video.
And it's hateful, violent statements like these that nelson says keeps many in the LGBT community shut out.
"This can definitely cause more harm to our LGBT youth and those still living in the closet that are older - it causes our suicide rates to go up. It causes kids to feel like they're worthless," Nelson said.
KOVR, a television station in Sacramento, tried to speak with Jimenez on Monday about the inflammatory comments he made in his speech, but Jimenez would not speak to the reporter.
With the LGBT community recently celebrating marriage equality, Nelson said they've become complacent and the fight for equality still isn't over.
"The bottom line is to love thy brother as you love thyself," Nelson said.
Sacramento's mayor took to twitter and condemned the inflammatory remarks.
Copyright 2016 KOVR, Verity Baptist Church via CNN. All rights reserved.
