School and Gun Violence Prevention

Floor Speech

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Ms. BONAMICI. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to say that we must refuse to accept gun violence as normal. Today, I stand with students from Oregon to Florida, who are courageously and peacefully demanding that their elected leaders take real action to prevent gun violence in their communities.

This past weekend I met Madeline, a high school student from Beaverton, Oregon. She said that now when she enters a classroom, her first thought is: where can she hide, and how could she escape.

As a mom, that broke my heart. And I heard from students in McMinnville, Oregon. They told me they are terrified when they hear a fire alarm because that is how the Parkland, Florida, massacre started.

How have we become a country where our students are afraid in their classrooms?

Mr. Speaker, we owe it to Madeline and to all of the students around the country to protect them from violence and to keep them safe in school and in their communities.

The STOP School Violence Act is a modest first step, but we must do more. We must listen to the voices of the students and work toward creating a safer future for them and for everyone.

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