Congresswoman Brenda Lawrence Meets with President Obama to Tackle Gun Violence
Press Release
Rep. Brenda Lawrence (MI-14) today released a statement regarding the meeting she attended with President Barack Obama and a small group of other Members of Congress on Monday, and her participation in the President's White House Address on gun violence today.
"I strongly support the President's proposal to address gun violence by providing for new ATF and FBI resources and staff as well as support for mental health programs and reviews. Nothing in the President's proposal restricts our 2nd Amendment right to bear arms or 4th Amendment right to privacy. It does, however, address several loopholes that gun dealers have been able to exploit for far too long. It also addresses the appalling lack of access to information related to people who have been legally determined unfit to purchase firearms. This includes felons, those convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence, and people who have been found to be a risk to themselves and others and prohibited from possessing a firearm for mental health reasons."
America's failure to act on this most important issue has come at a devastating cost for Detroit and for all of Michigan. As of September, the number of homicides in Detroit was up 5 percent as compared to the same period in 2014, according to the Detroit Police Department. According to state data, the vast majority of the homicides in Detroit in 2013 were related to gun violence (247 of the 291 homicides listed). Additionally, Michigan had 3,000 gun deaths categorized as homicides from 2008 to 2013 and 70 percent of those slayings occurred in Wayne County, which includes Detroit.
These deaths are not single tragedies, they forever impact the lives of all those who knew and love the victims. The survivors of this ongoing epidemic don't want to hear about thoughts and prayers; they are tired of the hand-wringing and moments of silence. They want and have a right to expect Congress to take action. I urge my colleagues in both the House and Senate, and on both sides of the aisle, to take the most simple and most effective action by enforcing existing laws for background checks and providing the necessary resources for that enforcement."
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