Rep. Cunningham Statement on the 1st Anniversary of the Parkland Shooting

Press Release

To mark the one-year anniversary of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, Congressman Joe Cunningham released the following statement:

"We mourn the 17 lives that were lost to violence one year ago today. The senseless death of students and staff at MSD was tragic and painful for the community of Parkland, Florida and the rest of the nation. We admire the unity and strength of the citizens and survivors who have worked courageously to keep the memory of those 17 alive, and their fight for future episodes of gun violence to be prevented. Alyssa, Martin, Nicholas, Jaime, Luke, Cara, Gina, Joaquin, Alaina, Meadow Helena, Alex, Carmen, Peter, Scott, Aaron, and Chris will never be forgotten. Today, we honor their lives with action and commit ourselves to common sense solutions that will make our schools, our theatres, and our places of worship safer."

Background

This week, Congressman Joe Cunningham introduced the "Enhanced Background Checks Act of 2019" with Majority Whip James Clyburn and Republican Rep. Peter King. The bipartisan legislation will close the so-called "Charleston Loophole" that currently allows the sale of a firearm to proceed if a background check is not completed within three days. This loophole in the background check system is the reason a gunman was able to obtain the weapon used to murder nine people and wound three others as they participated in a Bible study at the historic Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina in June 2015.

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