Biden calls for action on gun violence prevention on Sandy Hook anniversary
US President Joe Biden has called on Congress to act on gun violence prevention in remarks commemorating the ninth anniversary of the Sandy Hook elementary school massacre where 20 students and six staff members were killed.
More than 3,000 children and teens have been shot and killed and 15,000 more have been shot and injured since Sandy Hook, according to data from Everytown for Gun Safety, which tracks gun violence and other shootings on school grounds.
The Sandy Hook school shooting occurred on December 14, 2012, in Newtown, Connecticut, when 20-year-old Adam Lanza fatally shot 20 children between six and seven years old, as well as six adult staff members, before killing himself. Prior to driving to the school, Lanza shot and killed his mother at their home.
Although the Sandy Hook massacre was the third-deadliest mass shooting in US history, Congress has consistently failed to pass federal gun control legislation due to the influence of the powerful gun lobby.
“As a nation, we owe all these families more than our prayers. We owe them action,” Biden said in a video message released by the White House on Tuesday.
Biden called on the Senate to rapidly pass three House-passed bills, one to extend background checks, another to keep guns out of the hands of abusers.
“I know our politics are frustrating and can be frustrating and it’s particularly frustrating now. But we can’t give up hope, we can’t stop,” Biden said.
Biden called Sandy Hook, which occurred during the Obama administration when he was vice president, “one of the saddest days we were in office.”
“No matter how long it’s been, every one of those families relives the news they got that day. Twenty precious first-graders, six heroic educators, a lone gunman and an unconscionable act of violence. Everything changed that morning for you and the nation was shocked,” Biden said.
The US president said he got to know the families of the victims and stated that they have worked to change the laws and culture around gun violence.
“We came close to legislation, but we came up short. It was so darn frustrating. And it’s still frustrating now for you and me and so many others,” he said. “We have to keep up the pressure.”
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