Mass protests organized against loose gun laws across US
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Hundreds of regions across the US will see demonstrations against the backdrop of the mass shooting sprees that have plagued the country.
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Demonstration in front of the White House on June 11, 2022
After two mass shootings in the past month, which have left families broken and devastated, thousands of people are expected to protest the current status of gun laws in the US, demanding tighter laws.
A shooting at an elementary school in Texas killed 19 children and 2 teachers and another one at a supermarket in New York killed 10 Black citizens were the main 2 recent events which sparked the call for protests, planned at hundreds of locations across the country.
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This year, gun violence has claimed the violence of more than 19,300 people in the united States according to the Gun Violence Archive.
"After countless mass shootings and instances of gun violence in our communities, it's time to take back to the streets," March for Our Lives, which is organizing the demonstrations, said on its website. "Demonstrate to our elected officials that we demand and deserve a nation free of gun violence," it said.
March for Our Lives was founded by survivors of the shooting at a high school in Parkland, Florida, who organized a rally that drew hundreds of thousands of people to the nation's capital in March 2018. David Hogg, a founder and board member of the organization, has appealed for Americans of all political stripes to take part in the Saturday protests.
Anti gun violence protest in West Philly. It’s being coordinated alongside hundreds of #MarchForOurLives protests across the country. More @KYWNewsradio pic.twitter.com/OYbHFGBAXQ
— Hadas Kuznits (@hadaskuznits) June 11, 2022
"Whoever you are, march with us... Gun owners, NRA members, Republicans, Democrats, independents, and people from all backgrounds are fed up and it is time we make Congress do something," Hogg wrote for Fox News.
"If we can agree that killing children is unacceptable, then we need to either prevent people intent on killing from getting their hands on the guns they use or stop their intent to kill in the first place," he said.
Despite the massive outrage and devastation due to the US' loose gun laws, many laws fail to go through as Republicans stand in opposition in the way of making major change in the country, which could potentially save thousands of lives.
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This week, the House of Representatives, which is mostly controlled by Democrats, passed a package of proposals this week, which included raising the age of gun purcahse from 18 to 21. However, the party does not have 60 votes to take it to the US Senate.
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New gun control measures have 'no chance' in US Senate: Analysis
Analysts reported that the latest comprehensive gun control plan passed by the US House of Representatives on Wednesday will not pass the Senate, which is currently working on its own bill.
Following a succession of high-profile mass shootings in the United States, including an elementary school shooting in Texas that killed 21 and a supermarket shooting in New York that killed 10, discussions in Congress on gun violence and associated gun regulations rose dramatically.
On Wednesday, the House passed gun control legislation that included raising the purchase age for certain firearms and encouraging safe gun storage, among other things. On Thursday, a new gun control bill was introduced to create a federal equivalent of so-called "red flag" legislation, which restricts gun access to those seen as a threat.
Both initiatives have almost no chance of passing through the Senate, where Democrats hold a 51-vote majority, counting the vice president's vote because Republican lawmakers are convinced these bills violate the Second Amendment of the US Constitution, which guarantees Americans the right to keep and bear arms.
"I doubt that bill will make it through the Senate, in which there are stronger advocates for gun rights than in the House of Representatives. A bipartisan committee in the Senate is trying to hammer out a compromise bill that provides for more extensive background checks for would-be gun purchasers and more available information about those who might be dangerous gun owners," Paul Gottfried, a political theorist and former Horace Raffensperger Professor of Humanities at Elizabethtown College, said, noting that the Senate has "stronger advocates for gun rights than in the House of Representatives."
He also argued that the National Rifle Association (NRA) does not influence senators who support gun ownership because they are simply following the preferences of their pro-gun constituents.
