Recognizing the Need for Federal Action to Prevent Gun Violence

Floor Speech

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Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, a gun violence epidemic plagues the United States of America. Although the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act advanced important reforms to address gun violence--including enhanced background checks, prohibitions on gun trafficking and straw purchases, funding to support Extreme Risk Protection Orders and community-based violence intervention, and one billion dollars to support mental health--the federal government must take additional action to protect our young people and communities from gun violence.

State and local laws can only do so much to curb gun violence. Illinois and the City of Chicago can implement strict gun regulations, but if states like Indiana and Wisconsin keep weak restrictions in place, then practically anyone can cross those state borders and acquire a gun. We must limit the number of guns that exist in our country. We must ban assault weapons and enact strong background checks with no loopholes. We must repeal immunity for firearm manufacturers so individuals can bring civil actions to hold these companies responsible for their role in the gun violence epidemic. We must pass my bill--the Ammunition Identification Act--that would provide law enforcement with the tools to trace ammunition back to its purchaser.

Also, we must invest in community-based programs that successfully decrease gun violence. UCAN operates one of these innovative community- based programs on the westside of Chicago in areas with high unemployment and poverty rates. The Violence Intervention and Prevention program intervenes with victims and perpetrators after gun violence to help address trauma and limit violent responses, leading to a 30 percent reduction in shootings where this program was implemented. Another program is Chicago CRED, or Create Real Economic Destiny, that believes that those involved in gun violence are not the problem, but the future solution. When participants join CRED, they receive counseling, life coaching, education, and a pathway to employment. A study by Northwestern University found that--although around 85 percent of CRED participants reported a familial history with gangs, many had a criminal record, and some reported being gunshot victims--CRED alumni were less likely to be victims of gun violence because they left vulnerable situations and entered stable lifestyles after receiving the care they needed.

However, we cannot successfully prevent gun violence without revenue. That is why I champion the Gun Violence Prevention and Safe Communities Act that would create guaranteed, annual funding for gun violence prevention via a 0.5 percent increase in federal gun and ammunition excise taxes. This bill would evenly divide the estimated $20 to 36 million of annual revenue to fund gun violence research, hate crime data collection and prevention, forensic examiner training to improve gun crime clearance rates, and community-based violence intervention and prevention programs. As Fredrick Douglass once said, ``People might not get all they work for in this world, but they certainly must work for all they get.'' If we truly want to make progress in preventing gun violence in this country, then we must work for it and invest in it.

We also must remember that preventing gun violence is broader than simply gun-focused programs. People turn to gun violence when they lack economic security, food security, housing security, and educational opportunity. Under the Obama Administration, the Office of Civil Rights at the Department of Education had a goal of reducing gun violence at its source by creating a national tool to examine equity and educational opportunities across the country. This tool demonstrated that inequities from the start of an individual's life deeply affect their outcomes and that the school-to-prison pipeline in high-in-crime areas coincides with the quality of education. If we continue to neglect our citizens and allow disparities in opportunity and security, we will not successfully end gun violence.

As my mother told me, an ounce of prevention is worth so much more than a pound of cure. I cannot stress enough how important it is to enact effective gun legislation on the federal level. Gun violence is a public health crisis. As such, the federal government must act to protect its citizens.

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