This browser does not support the Video element.
Call for special session to address gun violence
In the wake of the Apalachee High School shooting, calls for a special session to address gun violence has become louder.
ATLANTA - Gun violence has become an everyday reality in Georgia. That is according to Democratic lawmakers and moms' and kids' organizations who are demanding change in our state. They are once again asking Republican Gov. Brian Kemp for a special session to deal with gun violence. Gun safety advocates and lobbyists held a press conference on Friday, two days after a shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder claimed the lives of two teachers and two students and injured nine others.
"When did we get OK with the deaths of children? Guns are the leading cause of death for kids and teens in this country," said LaDeija Kimbrough, a Clark Atlanta University student and member of the advocacy group Everytown for Gun Safety.
Gun safety advocates are sounding the alarm. They say Georgia has some of the weakest gun laws in the country and innocent people will continue to die if we don't do something.
"We had the policy tools to prevent this tragedy from happening in the first place and that we did not use them because my Republican colleagues chose to gamble with our children's lives rather than face the gun lobby," said state Rep. Saira Draper, D-Atlanta.
Lawmakers say Republicans blocked every single piece of gun safety legislation during the last session. They now say the state is at a crossroads.
"We are fighting for the fundamental right of all people to attend school, to go to church, to live," said state Rep. Eric Bell, D-Jonesboro.
This browser does not support the Video element.
Vigil for those killed in Apalachee High shooting
It's been two days since the tragic shooting took place at Apalachee High. The community gathered on Friday evening to try to process what happened and begin to heal.
"I want students to become future leaders, but unfortunately, they are learning how to duck and cover from active shooters, as opposed to learning how to be productive leaders," said state Rep. Omari Crawford, D-Decatur.
An Alpharetta mother interrupted the news conference pleading for lawmakers to intervene. She did not send her 12-year-old son to school on Friday after viewing a troubling social media post that his school would be next.
"This is real. This is a nightmare. This is Georgia students. We are talking about pre-K to high school," mother Stella Silva Garcia proclaimed.
FRIENDS AND FAMILY REMEMBER FALLEN VICTIMS OF APALACHEE HIGH SCHOOL ATTACK:
- Apalachee High School student Christian Angulo 'was so loved by many'
- Apalachee Wildcats Coach Richard Aspinwall remembered by players as 'like family'
- Cristina Irimie remembered as 'hero' educator, 'role model for our generations'
- Sister of Apalachee High School student Mason Schermerhorn: ‘He loved everyone’
- How to help Apalachee High School shooting victims
FOX 5 reached out to Gov. Kemp to get his opinion on a special session to deal with gun violence. He said through a spokesperson:
"Now is the time for investigation and mourning for those we've lost, not for politics."
The governor’s spokesperson went on to say he has invested in school safety and behavioral health reform in the past.