Washington, D.C. — Yesterday, Rep. Lucy McBath (GA-06) joined fellow lawmakers, advocates, and survivors in a historic series of events that urged action on passing legislation to prevent gun violence.
“This was a day of action. We are listening to the American people – the American people are tired of fearing for their lives, they are tired of fearing for the safety of their children in schools, at shopping malls, and at places of worship. The American people are pleading with us to do something, because no one is immune to this,” McBath said. “Thank you to the hundreds of advocates who shared their stories at these events and continue to show their strength and determination to save American lives.”
Watch McBath’s powerful, compelling opening at the House Judiciary Committee markup, or download the video here:
"I know the pain of losing a child to gun violence.
— Rep. Lucy McBath (@RepLucyMcBath) September 10, 2019
And not anyone in this room, anyone in this country, should ever be faced with that pain." pic.twitter.com/rOHW9MuM0M
The House Judiciary Committee marked up and voted to approve a series of bills to help respond to the growing problem of gun violence, including McBath’s H.R. 3076, the Federal Extreme Risk Protection Order Act of 2019, which was added to H.R. 1236, the Extreme Risk Protection Order Act of 2019, H.R. 1186, the Keep Americans Safe Act; and H.R. 2708, the Disarm Hate Act. McBath’s bill is similar to legislation that has been signed into law under state leadership from both political parties.
“It is our duty to listen to the 97% of Americans who believe in universal background checks, the Americans who support closing the Charleston loophole, the Americans who support giving our law enforcement the lifesaving tools they need to make our communities safer,” McBath continued. “We have taken action to save American lives because inaction is unacceptable. It is past time for the Senate to do the same.”
The markup followed a forum to hear from panelists who had been affected by gun violence, held by the Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, of which McBath is a Vice-Chair, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and Chairman Mike Thompson. Panelists included Ret. Chief Daniel Isom, former Chief of Police for the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department; Vic Bencomo, 22-year Navy veteran, gun owner and member of the Colorado Gun Owners for Safety; The Honorable Christine Hunschofsky, Mayor of Parkland; Dr. Joseph Sakran, trauma surgeon and gun violence survivor from Baltimore; and Ariel Hobbs, student member of the March For Our Lives Board of Directors from Texas. A livestream of the event can be found here.
Finally, Rep. McBath joined Everytown for Gun Safety and Moms Demand Action in a press conference outside the U.S. Capitol. Notable attendees included Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley, Rep. Mike Thompson, Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, Rep. Peter King, and Rep. John Lewis. A video of the event can be found here.
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