AMY GOODMAN: This is Democracy Now!, democracynow.org. I’m Amy Goodman.

We end today’s show in Germany, where a man drove a minivan into a crowd of people near Berlin’s Pride celebration Saturday, killing one, injuring 29. Authorities later shot and killed a man during an operation Sunday. The alleged suspect was identified as Abdul Ballout, a 21-year-old German citizen. According to authorities, he tried to join the Islamic State and was released from prison in May despite being jailed for preparing an attack. This is Berlin’s mayor, Kai Wegner.

MAYOR KAI WEGNER: [translated] I can only say that Berlin, as a city of freedom and diversity, will continue to stand strong and make its position clear. We will not allow anyone to take away our way of life or the way we live together.

AMY GOODMAN: On Sunday, thousands of people gathered around Brandenburg Gate in Berlin for a community vigil.

AARON AUCHTER: [translated] We are here today to commemorate the horrific attack and to honor those who were injured. And most importantly, we are, of course, with those who have lost loved ones and who witnessed this horrific act. But we are also with all those who are simply utterly shocked by the news. I’m from the Lambda Youth Network. We carry out youth work across the country, and our funding for next year has just been completely cut. That means we’ll have to close our doors at the end of the year.

AMY GOODMAN: For more, we’re joined by Alfonso Pantisano, the queer commissioner of the Berlin state government.

Thank you so much for being with us, Alfonso. If you can — first of all, our condolences. Talk about what happened. You were there in the rally outside the Brandenburg Gate, where there were thousands. Talk about what happened Saturday.

ALFONSO PANTISANO: Well, we had an amazing day, people celebrating on the streets their diversity, people celebrating their freedom, but also reminding everyone that we are still under attack from so many directions. Politics is changing. So, next to the fact that we’re celebrating, we’re also protesting and demanding to be treated equally.

At the evening, almost at the end of the celebrations, after a beautiful concert, suddenly the stage program stopped, and we got evacuated. And then, later on, we found out that an attack had taken place. So, I remained onto the streets of Berlin until deep into the night to be there and to show support as the queer commissioner of the city, but I could feel already the grief of my community. And the feeling of feeling scared and insecure was all over the air of Berlin.

AMY GOODMAN: So, you are a government official. You had called for proper security at the Pride celebration. Talk about the man who’s been identified as Abdul Ballout. According to authorities, Ballout tried to join the Islamic State, was released from prison in May despite being jailed for preparing an attack, for attempting to prepare an attack. Explain the preparations for this event. And do you feel let down by the government?

ALFONSO PANTISANO: Well, the police in Berlin is doing, as I always say, an incredible job in trying to secure every big event in this city. The capital of Berlin sees around nine to 10 demonstrations a day, being the capital of Germany. And especially by safeguarding the queer community, they’re trying their very best. But at the end, there is no such thing as a 100% security.

I have no idea yet what the investigations will bring to light and how a man could possibly enter the Tiergarten Park late at night with a van. I have no idea how that could happen, so the investigations will have to show it. But as far as I can say, police is really doing everything possible to safeguard every demonstration, and especially those that are affected and are including the LGBTI community in Berlin.

Regarding the man, we have heard the news. We all know whatever the news outlets around the world already are talking about, a young man born here in Germany and being radicalized by the IS. And we have to see now what the further investigations bring along.

AMY GOODMAN: And can you talk about the fears that the far right will use this attack to continue fueling anti-Islam and anti-immigrant rhetoric, while also condemning the violence against the LGBTQ community that you’ve been doing?

ALFONSO PANTISANO: Well, it’s a little bit like when an animal dies and birds come to rip apart the body and eat it. That’s what’s happening at the moment. Everyone is now focusing again on the racist and also Islamophobic comments. Yes, we do have a huge problem worldwide with radical Islamistic groups, such the IS and others. We have a huge problem with religions in general who do not accept queer life at all — some more, some less. But the idea of religions is not to include LGBTI people into their own ideology and beliefs.

At the same time, we have to look at how political parties and how governments are now destroying everything that we, as a queer community, for decades and decades have fought for in order to be treated equally. The far right here in Germany is, of course, waiting for an attack like this one, to use it in order to highlight that the foreigners are the problem. But by doing so, they completely forget and avoid to look at how much queerphobia there is in this country, in all various levels of structures, in schools, at the workplace, in churches, on the streets, in sports and in so many other places. Yes, they might not come out onto the streets with a van and kill us in a big huge group like possibly this attack could have done. And by saying so, I want to express my condolences to the family of the deceased woman, the deceased mother, and all of the injured people.

But at the same time, we do have a huge problem of homophobia and queerphobia here in this country, fueled by rhetorics by democratic parties like the CDU and others, and we have to look at it. What does that cause when a chancellor says that, for example, the Berlin Reichstag is not a circus tent, when mentioning that he doesn’t want to have the rainbow flag flying over his roof during Pride parade, and many other comments, derogatory comments, that the chancellor himself has made in the past. This fuels the rhetoric. This fuels the hate. This fuels the insecurity within the LGBTI community. And we are under attack. And we have to mention that in order to highlight it, people need to stop and think, “What the hell are we doing at the moment? In which world are we trying to let children grow” —

AMY GOODMAN: We’re going to — 

ALFONSO PANTISANO: — “who are LGBTI and who” —

AMY GOODMAN: We’re going to have to leave it there. Alfonso Pantisano, queer commissioner of Berlin, speaking to us from Germany. That does it for our show. I’m Amy Goodman. Thanks for joining us.