On Sunday, June 24, 1973, the largest LGBTQ massacre in the history of the United States occurred at the Upstairs Lounge in New Orleans, LA. It was the final day of a Pride Weekend celebration, and dozens from at the Metropolitan Community Church, the first gay church founded in the US, went to the Lounge. The attacker coated the stairs with lighter fluid, which made way for an exploding fireball throughout the building and took the lives of 32 people. Despite being the deadliest fire in New Orleans history, few news organizations respectably covered the tragedy.