Inspired by a Salon.com article written by Jonathan Rauch, Krikket, a libertarian activist from Illinois while living in Massachusetts, founded the Pink Pistols in July 2000. The organization had at least 45 chapters, as of October 2014. Those chapters are located in 33 states and three countries that are principally made up of gun-owning LGBT individuals, though neither status is mandatory for membership. The political orientation of the Pink Pistols is considered unusual due to the popular perception in the United States of firearms ownership as a "conservative issue" and sexuality as a "liberal issue". However, there is nothing within either of these two single issues that is mutually exclusive and a variety of other pro-gun organizations exist for groups not typically associated with gun rights. Pink Pistols' activities include firing range visits and political activism. The group occasionally produces report cards on politicians, rating their position on issues of interest to members. According to pinkpistols.org: The Pink Pistols' symbol consists of an overhead view of a picto-person aiming a handgun in an isosceles stance superimposed on a pink triangle. The pink triangle, now a gay pride and gay rights symbol, was originally a badge that homosexual concentration camp victims were forced to wear during the Holocaust. According to spokesperson Gwen Patton, "We don't want people to hurt us, we want people to run away from us, and the best way we have found to do that is to be armed." Patton has also stated that, "the Pink Pistols tend to get a better response from firearms supporters than from homosexuals". The group's membership increased from 1,500 to 4,500 in the week after the 2016 mass shooting at an Orlando, Florida gay nightclub. As of June 24, 2016, the membership is over 7,000, and there are 36 chapters around the country. The group experienced a further rise in interest following Donald Trump's election to the presidency later that year. By April 2017, the group claimed a membership of over 9,000. On 23 September 2018, trans woman Erin Palette became the new president of the Pink Pistols.
