Florida Lawmakers, Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action Volunteers, Gun Violence Survivors and Partner Organizations Call for Action on Gun Safety During Advocacy Day

TALLAHASSEE, FL. –  Today, Florida Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action volunteers, both part of Everytown for Gun Safety’s grassroots network, held their advocacy day for the 2024 legislation session and held a press conference to call for action on gun safety during the session. Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action volunteers gathered at the Florida State Capitol to not only honor and stand with victims of gun violence, but to continue to call on Florida lawmakers to advance a common-sense gun safety agenda that will save lives. This includes calling for legislation to require secure storage in vehicles and to protect current laws that were passed in the wake of the deadly mass shooting in Parkland that have proven effective, such as extending the 3-day required waiting period for purchasing a firearm to all guns and requiring gun buyers to be 21 years of age or older. 

At today’s press conference, Congressman Maxwell Frost (FL-10), State Representative and Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell (HD-67), Senator Lori Berman (District 31), State Representative Joe Casello (HD-90), State Rep. Christine Hunschofsky (HD-95) , State Rep. Yvonne Hinson (HD-20) Jennifer Blyther, Moms Demand Action Florida Chapter Volunteer, Brother Lyle Muhammad, Executive Director of Circle of Brotherhood, Molly Cohen, Students Demand Action Florida Chapter volunteer and Leon High School Student, and Juliana Tripodi, Students Demand Action Florida Chapter volunteer and Leon High School Student called on lawmakers to do more to protect their constituents to prevent future tragedies. 

“The NRA isn’t about everyday gun owners. It’s about everyday gun manufacturers. It’s about valuing corporate profits over our children and over our people,” said Congressman Maxwell Frost. “We lose 100 people a day to gun violence. But behind every number, there’s a person—there’s a human. We’re here at the capital not just to honor and remember the victims of gun violence but to honor them with action.”

“It’s not culture war stuff, it’s common sense laws like safe storage, it’s common sense laws like universal background checks,” said State Representative and Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell. “Every Floridian deserves the freedom to be healthy, prosperous and safe, and that certainly includes the freedom to be safe from gun violence.”

“We’re not asking you to have political courage. We’re asking you to have common sense,” said State Representative Christine Hunschofsky. “No one should be dying from gun violence in this country. No one should be witnessing gun violence in this country, and no one should be suffering the trauma that we know can be prevented if we just do the right thing.” 

“Governor DeSantis and his Republican lawmakers have shown their true cards: Their loyalties lie with the gun lobby and not the American people,” said Molly Cohen, Students Demand Action Florida Chapter volunteer and Leon High School Student. “When guns are the number one killer of our generation in the country, the last thing Florida should be doing is weakening its gun laws.” 

In an average year, 2,989 people die and 5,267 are wounded by guns in Florida. Florida has the 20th-highest rate of gun violence in the US and guns are the 2nd-leading cause of death among children and teens in Florida. In Florida, an average of 214 children and teens die by guns every year: These staggering numbers are preventable. 

To speak with a Florida Moms Demand Action or Students Demand Action volunteer, please do not hesitate to reach out to [email protected].