(WASHINGTON, DC.) — US Representative Lucy McBath (D-Georgia) lost her son to gun violence in 2012. In 2023, she’s among a group of congressmen renewing the calls for action on gun violence.
In metro Atlanta, the district that McBath represents in Congress, at least three people were shot, and two people died from gun wounds over this past weekend. Using a technical procedure called a “discharge petition,” Congressional Democrats are hoping to force a measure which would lead directly to debate and a vote on new gun control measures.
The measures would involve stiffer requirements on background checks for firearms vendors, and new regulations for assault-style weapons. Any one of the petitions, upon reaching 218 signatures, would froce debate and a vote on the measures.
As of right now, full Democratic support gives the petitions 208 signatures. That means just ten Republicans need to break from their party and join them to force a vote. So far, none have.
“After the conviction of my son’s killer, I made a promise to Jordan on the steps of the courthouse to take all the love I have as a mother and spend the rest of my life devoted to making sure parents across the country never had to go through the same pain that I did,” McBath said. “It is these policies that will fulfill our promise.”