The mother of Heather Heyer voiced her support for the Second Amendment activists rallying in Virginia against gun control measures proposed by the state’s Democratic-controlled legislature.
Susan Bro, whose 32-year-old daughter was killed by a car during the 2017 white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, called the proposed gun control measures “a bit extreme” during a Monday interview with CNN. Bro said she supports the Second Amendment activists despite fears that the pro-gun rally could be a repeat of the white supremacist gathering in Charlottesville. She urged anyone considering violence to stay home and let the activists handle the rally.
“If I’m talking to someone who is a member of a hate group, I’m saying stay away. Don’t go to Richmond. We don’t need your ‘help.’ We can handle this on our own. If I’m talking to someone who has come because they care to participate in violence, even though they’re not normally a violent person, again: Stay away,” Bro said. “If you’re there to actually speak with representatives, have your voice heard, have calm conversations about what’s happening, by all means: Be there.”
She said she is a gun owner and believes many of the proposals in Richmond are “a bit extreme.”
“I believe in common-sense gun measures, definitely, but not extreme measures. And I think that those need to be discussed. I think people need to be able to talk to their representatives,” she said.
Bro said that she doesn’t appreciate President Trump using the moment to “push politics.” The president posted a tweet saying voters must pick Republicans in 2020 to protect their access to guns. Bro claimed that Trump “could care less about the Second Amendment.”
“I’m talking about people who are gun owners who have been pushing others to really foam at the mouth about the laws in Virginia and what the Democrats might do even before the list came out. I think the list is a bit extreme. There are some good common-sense gun laws, though, that are on that list. I hope sanity reigns today,” she said.
Bro explained that while she opposes some of Gov. Ralph Northam’s policies, she did support the Virginia Democrat’s decision to ban guns from the state capitol grounds ahead of the rally. She said that she hopes it can defuse any potential violence during the event, even though it could look like “overkill” to people hoping to speak to their elected officials.
Heyer was at a counterprotest opposing the “Unite the Right” gathering in Charlottesville when she was killed by James Field Jr., a 22-year-old white supremacist. Fields drove his vehicle through the counterprotest, killing Heyer and injuring 35 others. He was sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to 29 federal hate crimes.
