Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus calls for Legislature to take action ...

[Spirit of 76]

Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus calls for Legislature to take action, pass gun safety legislation following continued national tragedies

HARRISBURG, April 17 – The Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus is calling on the General Assembly to act and pass gun safety legislation following multiple mass shootings across the nation and the unjust expulsion of two legislators, and the attempted expulsion of a third, in Tennessee for so-called “disorderly behavior” following their protest in favor of gun reform in the Tennessee House chamber.

Today they joined Black legislators across the nation in decrying the parliamentary rules and procedures Republican majorities are using – or abusing – to stifle Black voices and avoid holding votes on the issues people want addressed, such as gun violence, but that they and their big moneyed backers don’t like.

According to PLBC Chair Donna Bullock, D-Phila., Republican legislators in Tennessee thought they could hide behind the veil of rules and procedure when expelling Rep. Justin Jones, D-Nashville, and Rep. Justin Pearson, D-Memphis, but the racist undertones prompting their expulsion were obvious. People should look no further than the recently leaked video of Tennessee Republican lawmakers discussing the vote, she said.

In recent weeks, the nation has been shocked by the news of not one, but two mass shootings occurring at a school in Nashville, TN and a bank in Louisville, KY. A total of 11 people combined lost their lives in these shooting sprees. PLBC lawmakers are saying enough is enough, and that Pennsylvania and legislatures across the nation must act now to protect children and all who simply want to make it home safely to their families.

“We here in Pennsylvania are all too familiar with the tactics that the opponents of gun safety employ to avoid acting — crushing bills in committees that have wide public support, gutting bills brought to a vote with heinous amendments and denying the intent of discharge resolutions,” Bullock said.

“It is disappointing that we are still having these national conversations on passing comprehensive gun safety legislation after countless innocent lives have been lost because of gun violence. How many more lives must we lose before we as legislators decide to enact laws to protect our constituents?”

“It doesn’t have to be this way,” Bullock continued. “We can and will effect real change and stop the onslaught of gun violence across the nation, across Pennsylvania and in our cities like Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, but it takes all of us and it takes courage. It takes the courage to stand up for what is right in the face of every headwind against us. That is exactly what we will do this session.”

Bullock said the PLBC stands with its fellow state legislators, the Tennessee 3, and shares their desire to pass gun safety legislation in Pennsylvania and beyond.


https://www.pahouse.com/InTheNews/Ne...ase/?id=128555

[akley88]

still trying to push the "gun Safety" term when what they mean is ban and confiscation.

[Spirit of 76]

Rep. Donna Bullock homepage:

https://www.pahouse.com/Bullock/

[Spirit of 76]

Is Tennessee a turning point? We hope so.
Rep. Donna Bullock April 12, 2023

The endless cycle of mass shootings, collective grief and debate continues to divide our nation. As Black legislators, we navigate this cycle looking for the right moment to highlight the oft-ignored daily gun violence in our communities, and to offer solutions. We look for allies. We stand in the gap for others. We carefully express justified outrage that doesn’t fit neatly in the box of decorum or culture of the legislature. It is a delicate balance -- a skill set many Black legislators have learned in state capitols across our nation.

The latest school shooting started another cycle with no solutions, another opportunity for Black legislators to lead. It resulted in the expulsion of two young, Black Tennessee lawmakers who dared to help the people of their state be seen and heard in the one place that holds the power to help.

Tennessee Reps. Justin Jones and Justin Pearson, both Democrats in a legislature controlled by Republicans, took a peaceful stand in their chamber after six children and staff at a Nashville school were slaughtered by an assault weapon in the hands of an ordinary citizen.

Instead of acknowledging the issue staring them in the face – gun violence and the senseless murder of innocent people – the Republican majority in the Tennessee House focused their outrage on decorum and likened the demonstration to the Jan. 6 insurrection, when a mob of more than 2,500 people incited by former President Trump stormed their way into the Capitol Complex to wreak havoc on our democracy.

And while the retaliation by the Tennessee Republican majority was extreme, and certainly undemocratic, it is not surprising. Their response is consistent with the actions of Republican-led legislatures across the country that use rules and institutional procedure to silence Black legislators on voting rights, women on abortion rights, and others to score political points. Our mics have been turned off, our floor remarks ruled ungermane, and our bills die in committee.

Members of the Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus found ourselves in a similar situation in 2020 – looking to pass police reform bills in the wake of George Floyd’s murder. We held a peaceful protest in the House chamber. Rather than listen to us, the Republican majority focused on member decorum.

We had several bills that would have addressed police transparency and accountability, but the Republican majority refused to even discuss the issue. They used their rules and procedures to keep those bills bottled up. Our unexpected stand in the chamber that day eventually led to a few reforms, but it shouldn’t have to be that way.

The same can be said for commonsense gun safety legislation. The danger of gun violence is real and overwhelming. Gun violence exists not just in Philadelphia. It exists in every town in Pennsylvania – whether by accident when a child gets hold of his parents’ gun, death by suicide, an angry gunman firing at a government building, a drive-by shooting or a violent attack at a synagogue…the list goes on.

Last year, when Democrats in the PA House finally convinced enough reasonable Republican lawmakers to act and pass gun safety reforms, the extreme members of their party used their oppressive rules and procedures to make sure the commonsense bills put forward never saw the light of day.

Similar stories abound in states across the nation.

The fragility of American democracy has never been more exposed.

Is Tennessee a turning point? We hope so. And we call on all Pennsylvanians and all Americans to call out and vote out the extremists who are devoted to governing by silencing others and prioritizing profits over people, politics over justice and power above all else.

https://www.pahouse.com/Bullock/InTh...ion/?id=128483

[steve_010]

I think the Black Caucus needs to push Black safety seeing as how they are the most likely to do the shooting and be shot. Facts.

[father-of-five]

I think the Black Caucus needs to push Black safety seeing as how they are the most likely to do the shooting and be shot. Facts.

Yep. The truth needs to hurt.

[WillyK]

Tennessee Reps. Justin Jones and Justin Pearson, both Democrats in a legislature controlled by Republicans, took a peaceful stand

They lead an unruly crowd into an active session while screaming chants into a megaphone.
Insurrection at it's finest.

[mikelets456]

All city violence, spiraling society and division is caused by leftist policies...period! That is what's getting people killed and attacked more than anything...

[akley88]

hasnt a video come out recently of one of them during the summer of love riots

[streaker69]

What does the Pennsylvania Legislative White Caucus have to say about it?