National Gun Violence Awareness Month

Floor Speech

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Mrs. FOUSHEE. Mr. Speaker, I thank Congresswoman McClellan and Congressman Carter for anchoring this Special Order hour to bring attention to one of the most pressing and pervasive challenges confronting our Nation.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today with urgency, grief, and determination during National Gun Violence Awareness Month, a time for us to recognize the heartbreaking toll that gun violence continues to take on communities across the country.

I am deeply saddened that this past Sunday in my home State of North Carolina, there was a mass shooting where at least 80 shots were fired, killing 1 person and injuring 11 others.

Unfortunately, this is not an isolated incident. Gun violence is a public health epidemic that affects Americans and ravages communities in every ZIP Code in every State. Yet, year after year, we see the same devastating trend: Black Americans are dying from gun violence at nearly three times the rate of White Americans.

Each year, more than 13,000 Black lives are lost to this epidemic. They are mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, friends, and neighbors whose futures are stolen, whose communities are left grieving, and whose absence is deeply felt every single day.

Tragically, the violence does not end there. For years, Black Americans have faced a persistent and disproportionate risk of being killed in police encounters involving firearms. Let me be clear: No one in America should have to fear for their lives in our schools, our stores, our places of worship, our streets, or anywhere in our communities.

Yet, while this crisis and disparity continues to grow across the country, some in Congress are moving in the wrong direction. Again, my colleagues just shared that, just a couple of weeks ago House Republicans voted along party lines to pass the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which included a provision to deregulate silencers. Due to the dangers they pose, these devices have been highly regulated for nearly 100 years, and this provision would make it easier for individuals to use firearms with less risk of detection, further endangering our communities already suffering from gun violence.

This is not the type of comprehensive gun reform legislation that the American people need or deserve. A majority of Americans support universal background checks, closing loopholes in gun sales, red flag laws, and safe storage legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues on the other side of the aisle: What are we waiting for? The oath of office that all Members of Congress took demands that we protect the American people. Yet, every day that we delay, lives are lost.

I urge my Republican colleagues to join House Democrats, the Congressional Black Caucus, and the House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force in advancing meaningful, commonsense reforms that will save lives, reduce violence, and protect all Americans.

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