December 12, 2024

Duckworth Meets with Illinois Gun Violence Prevention Advocates, Reiterates Call to Protect Lives

 

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today met with Illinois community members and gun violence prevention advocates and survivors to discuss their shared efforts to save American lives and pass common-sense gun safety reform like the federal assault weapons ban. The meeting included representatives from Highland Park, Moms Demand Action in Illinois and the Newtown Action Alliance. Photos from today’s meeting are available on the Senator’s website.

“The needless and preventable gun violence that too many Illinoisans—and Americans across the country—experience is heartbreaking and not reflective of the kind of future my daughters or any of our young people deserve,” Duckworth said. “And yet, these leaders and community advocates continue to show their courage and dedication every day as they work to make our communities safer. I was proud to meet with them today, and I’ll never stop working for commonsense gun safety reforms that can save lives and help prevent future tragedies from ever happening.”

Duckworth has been a fierce advocate of getting weapons of war off our streets. She supported the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which President Biden signed into law to help crack down on straw purchasing, expand background checks for buyers under 21 years of age, take steps to close the “boyfriend loophole,” support state red flag laws and offer billions in funding for counseling, mental health, and trauma support for victims of gun violence.

In May, Duckworth and U.S. Representative Jonathan Jackson (D-IL-01) introduced the Blair Holt Firearm Licensing and Record of Sale Act to help reduce firearm violence in Illinois and across the country by prohibiting unlicensed firearm ownership and the transfer of firearms without a valid firearms license. The legislation, which Duckworth has been pushing for since 2018, would also direct the U.S. Attorney General to establish and maintain a federal record of sale system and conduct fingerprint-based nationwide criminal background checks. This past Fourth of July, Duckworth returned to Highland Park to join with community members and leaders for a remembrance ceremony commemorating the two-year anniversary of the Fourth of July mass shooting. 

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