Gun Violence Survivors Attend SOTU As Push For Background Checks Intensifies

February 5, 2019

Refinery29

<div class="section-text" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Georgia,Times New Roman,serif; font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 28.05px; word-spacing: 0px;">If President Trump elevated the art of <a data-tracker-added="true" href="https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2019/02/democrats-state-of-the-union-guests" rel="nofollow" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(39, 255, 188); border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 2px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">trolling people</a> with his State of the Union guests, Democrats are practicing the art of wielding their guests as a rallying cry for policy reform. In an era when every detail is reported on and scrutinised on social media, it makes sense.</div>

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<div class="section-text" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Georgia,Times New Roman,serif; font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 28.05px; word-spacing: 0px;">Several Democratic lawmakers invited gun violence survivors, gun reform activists, or parents who have lost their children to gunfire as their State of the Union guests on Tuesday. It's a move meant to highlight the issue ahead of Wednesday's House Judiciary Committee <a data-tracker-added="true" href="https://judiciary.house.gov/news/press-releases/wednesday-house-judiciary-committee-hold-historic-gun-violence-hearing" rel="nofollow" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(39, 255, 188); border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 2px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">hearing on gun violence</a>, the first in eight years, where Aalayah Eastmond, survivor of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida, will testify.</div>

<div class="section-text" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Georgia,Times New Roman,serif; font-size: 17px; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 28.05px; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="display: inline !important; float: none; background-color: transparent; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: Georgia,Times New Roman,serif; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 28.05px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">Rep. Suzanne Bonamici of Oregon is hosting Alexandria Goddard, a student advocate for gun violence prevention who was an organiser for the Portland March for Our Lives. Rep. Bonamici's spokesperson said she knows of at least 10 other members of Congress who are bringing gun violence prevention advocates as guests.</span></div>

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Issues:Gun Violence Prevention