As Americans nationwide take a moment to honor the 26 lives lost at the tragic shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, President Barack Obama marked the tragedy’s first anniversary with a call for more gun control.
Recommended Stories
In his weekly address, the President asked the nation to “do more” to prevent such tragedies as the one that occurred in Newtown, Conn., from happening again. Calling for a nationwide grassroots push, President Obama encouraged citizens to re-up their fight for gun-control legislation, saying real change won’t come from Washington, but from the American people.
“And on this anniversary of a day we will never forget, that’s the example we should continue to follow. Because we haven’t yet done enough to make our communities and our country safer,” the President said. “We have to do more to keep dangerous people from getting their hands on a gun so easily. We have to do more to heal troubled minds. We have to do everything we can to protect our children from harm and make them feel loved, and valued, and cared for.”
The shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School mobilized gun control proponents across the country and sparked lawmakers on Capitol Hill to author legislation aimed at stricter gun laws. Despite Democratic-control of the Senate, however, gun bills stalled and failed to pass.
President Obama, who has made gun control one of his top priorities, has since ordered several executive actions pertaining to firearms, including one that banned military-grade weapons from being brought back into the U.S.
“But beneath the sadness, we also felt a sense of resolve – that these tragedies must end, and that to end them, we must change,” President Obama said Saturday. “From the very beginning, our efforts were led by the parents of Newtown – men and women, impossibly brave, who stepped forward in the hopes that they might spare others their heartbreak. And they were joined by millions of Americans – mothers and fathers; sisters and brothers – who refused to accept these acts of violence as somehow inevitable.”
The President and First Lady Michelle Obama observed a moment of silence for the lives lost at Sandy Hook Elementary School and lit 26 candles to honor those who died.
“As a nation, we can’t stop every act of violence. We can’t heal every troubled mind,” Obama said. “But if we want to live in a country where we can go to work, send our kids to school, and walk our streets free from fear, we have to keep trying. We have to keep caring. We have to treat every child like they’re our child. Like those in Sandy Hook, we must choose love. And together, we must make a change.”
Watch Obama’s Weekly Address here.
