The push for congressional action to help prevent gun violence continues.
“I am frustrated, heartbroken, and angry that this is where we are, 23 years after Columbine,” NEA President Becky Pringle said in testimony before the House Oversight & Reform Committee last Thursday. The hearing included jarring, unforgettable remarks from Robb Elementary survivor Miah Cerrillo, the parents of 10-year-old victim Lexi Rubio, a Uvalde pediatrician, and the mother of a worker injured at the Buffalo shooting.
“Our country has already experienced nearly 240 mass shootings in 2022. But that number does not begin to capture the scope of this epidemic. Every day, gun violence kills 111 people. That means we can expect 22,255 more deaths by gun this year. Inaction equals acceptance of the unacceptable,” NEA’s president said.
“A high school teacher in Arlington, Texas, survived a workplace shooting in a corporate setting, only to experience three school shootings and countless lockdowns. He is leaving with these words: ‘As much as I love teaching, if I can’t be fully present for my students, I am not going to be the educator they need.’
“Enough with so-called solutions that do not address the problem. We cannot place enough armed guards at every school building in America to protect us. We cannot ask educators to carry weapons and wear body armor while teaching and nurturing students. Because by the time someone has shown up with a military weapon, it is already too late. What we need for our students are more resources—not revolvers.”
The solution? In the words of NEA’s president: “Pass common-sense legislation so that not one more community is shattered, and not one more anguished parent has to lay a precious child to rest. Our children deserve the chance to grow and thrive. To live … into their brilliance.”
After the hearing, the House passed many of the common-sense measures NEA supports. Constructive negotiations on a narrower package continue in the Senate.
In solidarity,
Marc Egan
Government Relations Director
National Education Association
Yes, it happened again. And everyone in America knows it will continue to happen if nothing changes. Congress, we are watching and want to know: What are you going to do?
We need a judiciary that looks more like America, a judiciary that includes fair-minded people—with diverse personal and professional backgrounds—who are committed to justice for all.
CHEER: Rep. Annie Kuster (D-NH) urged colleagues on the House Agriculture Committee to extend USDA waivers for school meals to support students and families facing food insecurity.
CHEER: Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) for questioning Education Secretary Miguel Cardona about school facilities—and the need to modernize them—during a Senate hearing on U.S. Department of Education funding for next year.
CHEER: House Oversight and Reform Committee Democrats, including Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney (NY), pushed for common-sense gun safety measures and spoke out against false solutions—such as arming educators and turning schools into prisons—at a June 8 hearing on the epidemic of gun violence.
JEER: House Oversight and Reform Committee Republicans James Comer (KY), Jody Hice (GA), Glenn Grothman (WI), Virginia Foxx (NC), Clay Higgins (LA), Ralph Norman (SC), Andy Biggs (AZ), Byron Donalds (FL) and Andrew Clyde (GA) opposed common-sense safety measures at a June 8 hearing on the epidemic of gun violence. They provided status quo excuses, opposed common-sense and widely-supported gun safety reforms, and, in some cases, pushed for placing more guns on school property and turning schools and classrooms into virtual prisons.
