Statement From Sandy Hook School Survivor on Senate Filibuster to Demand Action on Gun Violence Prevention

In Just 24 Hours, Everytown’s #DisarmHate Campaign Has Driven More than 50,000 Petition Signatures and More Than 13,000 Calls to Congress Demanding Action

NEW YORK – In response to a filibuster launched by Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy to demand meaningful legislative action on gun violence prevention – including making it illegal for people convicted of violent hate crimes to buy or possess guns; closing the Terror Gap and making it illegal for suspected terrorists to legally buy guns; and requiring a criminal background check for every gun sale – Everytown for Gun Safety released the following statement:

STATEMENT FROM ERICA LAFFERTY, MEMBER OF THE EVERYTOWN SURVIVOR NETWORK AND SURVIVOR OF SANDY HOOK SHOOTING:

“For too long, the Congress has done nothing to prevent mass shootings and everyday gun violence – whether it was the murder of my mother, five of her colleagues and 20 first-graders at Sandy Hook School, the gun killings of nine worshipers at a black church in Charleston nearly a year ago or the massacre of 49 people at an LGBTQ nightclub in Orlando. Today, fearless members of our U.S. Senate are saying it is long overdue for our country to disarm hate – and I thank them. They are demanding criminal background checks for all gun sales. They are demanding that we close the Terror Gap that allows people deemed too dangerous to board airplanes to easily buy guns. They are demanding that people convicted of violent hate crimes be barred from buying or possessing guns. While these bills cannot bring back my mother, Dawn Lafferty Hochsprung, who was my idol and best friend – they can and will save some of the 91 people killed every day by gun violence. I will not rest until our whole Congress takes action to save American lives.”

More details on the Orlando mass shooting is available here. Details on the terror gap can be found here. Information on hate crimes legislation is available here.