The Orlando shooting exposed all of America's weaknesses - but then shone a light on the world's strength

Candlelight vigils were held in New York City, Chicago, Phoenix, Los Angeles, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Boston, New Orleans, San Diego, Glasgow, Sydney, London, Paris, Rome, Sao Paulo, Bangkok, Mumbai, Berlin, Seoul - need I go on?

A candlelight vigil in London (Max Benwell)

This weekend, thousands of us had our eyes trained on the Euros of 2016, hoping and praying against a terror attack. What we didn't know is we should have been watching the town of Orlando, Florida, home of Disney World - and a gay club by the name of Pulse.

In the early hours of Sunday morning, Omar Mateen, 29, entered the Pulse nightclub, where around 350 people were dancing and enjoying themselves. Using an assault rifle and a handgun, he murdered 49 of them and wounded 53 more. He was later killed by police at the scene.

Isis has claimed responsibility for the murders, though Mateen’s connection with the terror group is still unclear, and it’s been confirmed that the gunman was known to the FBI. There are reports that Mateen was enraged by a gay couple he saw kissing in public, and that this one glimpse at a homosexual relationship led him to the catastrophe in Orlando. But the real reasoning behind the Pulse shooting is still foggy. And of course it is. This sort of thing defies reason.

This was the worst mass shooting in US history; the deadliest terror attack on American soil since 9/11. Nothing can take away the grief of the friends and families who have lost their loved ones. So what happens next? How can we take anything positive away from something so incomprehensibly cruel?

This tragedy has led to one of the most amazing displays of love for the LGBT community I’ve seen in years, if ever. Somehow, some way, the world has managed to unite. There has always been hate – and there’s no denying that pockets of homophobic hatred rage; they’ll continue to rage long after Orlando. The Turkish newspaper’s headline ’50 perverts killed in bar’ is testament to that.

But there’s also been an astounding outpouring of grace and support.

Take a look around the world. People who have never set foot in America, let alone Orlando, are grieving with the US - and for the gay community as a whole. The Eiffel Tower in Paris was illuminated in brilliant rainbow colors; same with the city of Melbourne’s Town Hall, the One World Trade Center in New York City and the Tel Aviv City Hall.

Others are holding candlelight vigils and services across the world: in New York City, Chicago, Phoenix, Los Angeles, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Boston, New Orleans, San Diego, Glasgow, Sydney, London, Paris, Rome, Sao Paulo, Bangkok, Mumbai, Berlin, Seoul - need I go on?

Social media is aflame too - thousands of pictures are being shared with the hashtag #TwoMenKissing - men of all ages, ethnicities and backgrounds. And another trending topic: #GaysBreakTheInternet, a celebration of the ability for this marginalised group to overcome adversity. People are using the rainbow filter on their profile pictures, signaling a message to the gay community: “I’m with you. You’re not alone.” And others are actually ‘coming out’ as LGBT in response to the shooting.

Hundreds came together outside New York’s iconic Stonewall Inn, a national symbol of LGBT rights, to proclaim both their grief and their message. “We come today because we are a community that will never be silent again!” shouted Queer Nation organiser Ken Kidd during the gathering.

Then there are all those donating blood for the wounded, many of them Muslim – because, whatever Donald Trump would have you believe, most Muslims are good people who would save your life rather than take it. After the attacks, Islamic groups encouraged one another to “show who you really are” after the shooting and give blood.

Hassan Shibly, executive director of the Florida branch of the Council on American-Islamic Relations condemned the crime, saying there was never any justification for such an act. And Carlos Guillermo Smith, a representative of Equality Florida, an LGBT advocacy group, stated Equality Florida’s solidarity with both Shibly and the entirety of the Islamic and Muslim community. They’re together. They’re strong. They’re not alone.

In his Tony acceptance speech Sunday night, Hamilton’s Lin Manuel Miranda’s voice shook as he summed it all up with this: “Love is love is love is love is love is love …”

This horrible act of hatred exposed America’s weakness: its pathetic gun control, its in-your-face anger, its hardly-repressed homophobia and Islamophobia. But it also revealed America’s strength, and the strength of the world: the way we can unite, despite miles and miles between us, to honour the lives of those lost and strengthen the community from which they came.

Omar Mateen unleashed despicable violence, but he was one man. We are millions. And if we can come together after the Orlando shooting, if we can celebrate love and advocate policy change, if we can see past the fear, then people like him will never win.