Gun tragedy after gun tragedy has befallen our nation, and gun violence is still on the rise. It’s shameful that the NRA maintains a stranglehold on our ability to keep children safe in their own schools.
Or concerts. Or movie theaters. Or workplaces. Or houses of worship. Or simply walking down the streets of our neighborhoods or living in their own homes.
According to Everytown for Gun Safety, more than 36,000 people die by guns each year in the United States, including 231 gun deaths in Massachusetts. The majority of gun deaths are suicides. Black children and teens in Massachusetts are seven times more likely as their white peers to die by guns.
We have to be absolutely fearless in taking on the NRA, and passing common sense gun safety.
Jesse has proudly earned the Moms Demand Action Gun Sense Candidate distinction. She will fight tooth and nail against the NRA to pass legislation that:
- Bans assault weapons. We must prevent ANY weapon of war from getting into the hands of people who will use it to kill our friends, neighbors, and children.
- Implements universal background checks on guns and ammunition. We must require universal background checks for gun purchases and ammunition purchases. We must also update the background check system to close gun show loopholes and require background checks on all gun sales.
- Reauthorizes the Violence Against Women Act. We must expand domestic violence protections for victims to close the boyfriend loophole and require law enforcement officials to be notified each time an abuser tries to buy a firearm and fails the background check to make sure we are keeping guns out of the hands of domestic abusers.
- Holds gun manufacturers accountable for shootings. We need to repeal the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act so that survivors of gun violence and their families have the ability to hold gun manufacturers accountable.
- Increases funding to study the gun violence epidemic. We need to understand the root causes and impacts of gun violence to better address the epidemic.
- Invests in Violence Intervention Programs. We know communities of color are disproportionately impacted by gun violence. We need to invest in proven programs that help break these cycles of violence like community-based intervention programs, street outreach programs, and hospital-based intervention programs.