“How is it that we as a nation still allow guns to fall into the hands of people whose hearts are filled with hate?” said Democratic presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton Saturday, her voice rising as she delivered her prepared remarks. “You can’t watch massacre after massacre and not come to the conclusion that, as President Obama said, we must tackle this challenge with urgency and conviction.”
“We can have common-sense gun reforms that keep them out of the hands of criminals and the mentally unstable while not penalizing responsible gun owners,” Clinton said to sustained applause, as half of the 1,000 member San Francisco mayoral conference audience stood, reported USA Today.
Clinton’s call for “common-sense” restrictions on firearms comes in the wake of Wednesday’s Charleston, S.C., mass shooting by a 21-year-old white gunman that left nine black church members dead.
“It makes no sense that bipartisan legislation to require universal background checks would fail in Congress despite overwhelming public support,” said Clinton, alluding to proposals put forth by Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Pat Toomey, R-Pa., after the Newtown elementary school shooting.”It makes no sense that we couldn’t come together to keep guns out of the hands of domestic abusers or people suffering from mental illness, even people on the terror watch list.”
“I am not and will not be afraid to keep fighting for common-sense reforms and, along with you, achieve those on behalf of all who have been lost because of this senseless gun violence in our country,” she said, reported the Hill.
Clinton also called for a serious national discussion on race, citing white people’s fear of “the sight of young black man in a hoodie,” “the offhand comment about not wanting ‘those’ people in the neighborhood,” or “the cruel joke that goes unchallenged,” as examples. “We can’t hide from any of these hard truths about race and justice in America,” she said. “We have to name them and own them and then change them.”
“Once again, bodies are being carried out of a black church,” she said. “It is tempting to dismiss [this tragedy] as an isolated incident.”
“Just as earlier generations threw off the chains of slavery, and then segregation and Jim Crow — this generation will not be shackled by fear and hate,” said Clinton.
