Families whose loved ones were killed in the Sandy Hook school shooting nearly five years ago are calling on Congress to pass stronger guns laws in the wake of the shooting at a Las Vegas country music festival overnight that has killed 58 people.
Dawn Hochsprung was the principal of Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown and was killed in the December 2012 school shooting. Her daughter, Erica Lafferty, on Monday is using Twitter to urge people to call their Congress members about gun control.
“What I want to do - sit on my couch and cry,” she Tweeted. “What I am doing - tweeting, calling and emailing #Congress, encouraging others to get involved”
What I want to do - sit on my couch and cry
— Erica L Lafferty (@ELaffGarb) October 2, 2017
What I am doing - tweeting, calling and emailing #Congress, encouraging others to get involved
If I can get up today and act, so can you. Text READY to 64433 to get involved with @MomsDemand. It's time to be a part of the solution.
— Erica L Lafferty (@ELaffGarb) October 2, 2017
She said if she can get up and act, others can too. Read more of her Tweets here.
Nelba Márquez-Greene’s daughter, Ana Grace, was killed in the school shooting and on Monday she took to Twitter to express her displeasure with Congress.
“I don’t know what to say besides this is on every congressperson who said in ‘13: There is simply nothing we could do,” she Tweeted.
She went on to Tweet that she is heartbroken and said families do not recovery from tragedies like the one in Newtown or in Las Vegas. Read more of her Tweets here.
Donna Soto, whose daughter Vicki, a first-grade teacher, was among 26 people killed the school in Newtown, tweeted: "When will it end."
Newtown Action Alliance, a grassroots organization formed after the shooting in Sandy Hook, also released a statement Monday, saying members’ hearts are broken for the families of the victims and they are sending love and support.
“While we wait for more information to be released and the investigation to be completed, we cannot ignore that fact that rapid-fire weapons of war were used to brutally murder innocent Americans who were simply attending a live concert in Las Vegas. Over and over again, military-style assault weapons are the weapons of choice for mass shooters due to the sheer lethality of their design. Assault weapons are designed to kill as many people as possible as quickly as possible.
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“After the Sandy Hook tragedy and other mass shooting incidents, thoughts and prayers are offered by Congressional members who stand with the NRA. But these members of Congress have failed to do their job to keep all Americans safe. Taking action to reduce gun violence should not be a political issue. It is a matter of public safety and public health,” the alliance said.
It too is calling on Congress to reject policy proposals that loosen gun laws.
“Over 500,000 Americans have been killed or injured by guns since the Sandy Hook shooting tragedy. The Las Vegas massacre was the 272nd American mass-shooting incident in 2017. Too many Americans are getting killed in public spaces. Until our federal gun laws are strengthened, we are all vulnerable to becoming victims of gun violence in our country. We encourage all Americans to demand action from their congressional representatives by calling them at 202-224-3121,” the Newtown Action Alliance said in a statement.
The Connecticut Citizens Defense League, a Connecticut-based grass-roots gun rights organization, released a statement Monday morning in response to what is now the deadliest shooting in the United States.
"CCDL sympathizes with victims and families of this horrible mass murder in Las Vegas. We are eager for answers about what motivated this mass murderer and other questions about him as well," the organization said in a statement. "We would like to acknowledge the speedy response of law enforcement and their efforts to put an end to the incident as quickly as possible."
“I can understand the feelings and sentiments of a lot of people. I think we need more answers as far as the firearms used and his motives. One thing we don’t want to see is, gun control proponents are out there right now calling for knee-jerk legislation,” Scott Wilson, President of CCCDL, said in a statement.
