Nearly 500 people
packed the Rhode Island State House rotunda Tuesday for a rally celebrating the
introduction of a bill banning assault weapons and high capacity magazines. They filled the stairs and the second-floor hallways, dangled banners over railings, and cheered the legislators and high school students who urged the general assembly to take action.
The legislation, S2493, which was
introduced by Sen. Josh Miller (D-28) and Rep. Jason Knight (D-67) with 18
sponsors in the Senate and 29 in the House, bans the purchase, possession,
manufacture, or sale of any semi-automatic assault weapon and limits magazines
to 10 rounds.
The bill contains detailed descriptions of what constitutes an assault weapon, and includes a list of specific guns that are banned, including the AR-15. The act grandfathers current owners and exempts law enforcement officers.
The bill contains detailed descriptions of what constitutes an assault weapon, and includes a list of specific guns that are banned, including the AR-15. The act grandfathers current owners and exempts law enforcement officers.
The Rhode Island
Coalition Against Gun Violence (RICAGV) organized the rally. “We know that our
neighbor Massachusetts bans these weapons of war,” said RICAGV president Linda
Finn. “We know that Connecticut bans these weapons of war. We know New York
bans them. Why do we sell them to 18-year-olds?”
Gov. Gina Raimondo
complimented the General Assembly on last year’s bill taking guns out of the
hands of domestic abusers, and called on them to take action on assault weapons
in this session. “They are called military-style weapons because they belong in the military,” Raimondo said. “These are weapons designed to kill as many people, as fast as possible, and there is no place for them in our schools, in our communities, in our churches, in our libraries. Do the right thing. Pass that law.”
The legislation had
been drafted before the Parkland attack. “Enough was enough long before
Florida,” Sen. Miller said.
He noted that he’d
introduced similar bills every year since 2007, but said that what made it
different this time was having a powerful new group of advocates. “The most
effective are the children, not only from Florida, but the children from Rhode
Island. You can’t ignore those voices. The first responders that are here. The
mayors that are here. The parents that are here. This is a large chorus that
cannot be denied.”
“Mass shootings are
depressingly more common,” said Knight. “The weapon of choice for many of those
shooters is an assault rifle. My goal is to put daylight between the potential
mass shooter and his or her ability to obtain an assault rifle in Rhode
Island.”
Taliq Tillman, from
the Met School, talked about watching coverage of the Parkland shooting on TV.
"I was a witness to something that had become all too familiar, and there I was, sending my thoughts and prayers yet again. Again and again, our schools become crime scenes and hunting grounds. There’s nothing more debilitating than being a witness and sitting idly by. I speak for myself and my generation when I say, ‘Enough is enough.'” When Tillman was done, the entire rotunda began chanting, “Enough is enough.”
"I was a witness to something that had become all too familiar, and there I was, sending my thoughts and prayers yet again. Again and again, our schools become crime scenes and hunting grounds. There’s nothing more debilitating than being a witness and sitting idly by. I speak for myself and my generation when I say, ‘Enough is enough.'” When Tillman was done, the entire rotunda began chanting, “Enough is enough.”
“We feel that now, more than ever, our voices
deserve to be heard,” said Adah Bryan, a freshman student organizer at
Classical High School.
She explained how
students in Providence schools had walked out on Friday, Feb 23, an act that
put them in the Providence Journal — and the crosshairs of those opposed to gun
regulation.
“We’re being called
pawns, puppets, even child actors. [They say] we’re too young to make our own
choices, our own opinions, too young to know what we’re talking about. I am not
a pawn. We are not pawns,” she said. “How many lives will our lack of laws take
before we take action. Don’t let us be the next Parkland, the next Sandy Hook,
the next Columbine.”
Osiris Cortez, also
student organizer at Classical, said, “When we walked out of high school, it
was not to be rebellious teens, but to have our voices heard in this most
crucial discussion. This bill is the first step to curing gun violence and to
bring change to Rhode Island. We, Rhode Island, are one of seven states that
have not had a mass shooting. Let’s keep it that way.”
The rally broke up
amid loud, sustained applause for the students.
Asked about his
reaction, Knight told a reporter, “The kids speak the truth, and it’s on the
adults to listen. What they’re saying, it’s coming from the heart, and they
bring new eyes to the situation. And sometimes, bringing that new and fresh
perspective is enough to open up, unseal the eyes of people who have been around
longer.”
RICAGV organizer Linda
Finn told a reporter, “I almost started crying; those kids were so eloquent. I
know they’re working really hard. They need to make a difference, and they
are.”
A reporter caught up
with Sen. Jim Seveney (D-11), who had just finished signing on to the bill.
“Seems like we’re at a tipping point,” he said. “It took these high school kids
to explain to us what common sense looks like.”
John McDaid: Science fiction writer
and journalist from Portsmouth, RI