President Joe Biden called US Congress to strengthen Gun Laws to secure Americans

Listen to this article

On Sunday, sorrow reverberated across the United States as Americans and President Joe Biden joined a Florida community in remembering the 17 lives lost 3 years ago in the Parkland school shooting incident. Biden issued a statement and said, “In seconds, the lives of dozens of families, and the life of an American community, were changed forever”. The president used the occasion to call on Congress to strengthen gun laws, including requiring background checks on all gun sales and banning assault weapons. President said, “We owe it to all those we’ve lost and to all those left behind to grieve to make a change. The time to act is now”. Governor Ron DeSantis ordered flags be lowered to half-staff from sunrise to sunset across the state to honor those who perished when a former student of Marjory Stoneman Douglas opened fire on campus with an AR-15 rifle on Valentine’s Day in 2018.

Point to be noted that 14 students and 3 staff members were dead, and 17 others were wounded when the gunfire ended. The suspect, Nikolas Cruz is still awaiting trial. DeSantis also asked fellow Floridians to pause for a moment of silence at 3 pm Sunday. The governor said, “The Parkland community is resilient in the wake of tragedy, reminding us just how strong and united Floridians can be in the face of such devastating loss”. The Republican governor also pointed out that some of the school safety measures enacted since the tragedy 3 years ago, including money to install panic alert systems at schools across the state and to strengthen programs designed to stop violence before they occur. The panic alert measure was dubbed “Alyssa’s Law”, in honor of 14-year-old Alyssa Alhadeff (one of the students killed 3 years ago).

But some critics said the governor and Republican-controlled Legislature have done little to keep guns away from potentially bad actors and have opposed the ban of assault-style guns. President Biden added in his statement and said, “This Administration will not wait for the next mass shooting to heed that call. We will take action to end our epidemic of gun violence and make our schools and communities safer. For three years now, the Parkland families have spent birthdays and holidays without their loved ones. Today, as we mourn with the Parkland community, we mourn for all who have lost loved ones to gun violence. Over these three years, the Parkland families have taught all of us something profound. Time and again, they have shown us how we can turn our grief into a purpose to march, organize, and build a strong, inclusive, and durable movement for change”.