*** No candidate for Governor has been endorsed by the CDP ***
Today I celebrate our young people who, in an incredibly short time, galvanized our nation and called on adults to do our job and put children first. We can rid our streets of assault weapons and enact stricter gun safety laws, not just in California, but all over the country.
These young people inspired military veterans to create a video condemning the AR-15, and they got Trump to announce a move to ban bumpstocks. Their organizing even forced Gov. Rick Scott to sign stricter gun control legislation in Florida.
These young people give me hope for our nation. And when I watched some of the footage from the DC march this afternoon, and saw young African-Americans calling America out for not being the land of justice and equality, I knew this could be a real turning point. Because gun violence in America goes far beyond mass shootings, and its impact is felt the most in underserved communities of color.
All children deserve the opportunity to attend high quality schools with the best resources to prepare them for their future. We do not serve students well when we force them to cower in closets for shooter drills, or to live in neighborhoods riddled with violence. This added stress and anxiety makes learning that much more difficult, and it doesn’t have to be this way.
As governor, I will advocate for gun violence prevention, and I will invest in the communities that have been systematically underinvested in and denied economic opportunity, and consequently are often the hardest hit by gun violence. I commit to having young people at the table as part of the solution. I am grateful that the organizers of the march used their platform to give voice to those our nation has tried to silence or ignore.
Enough is enough.
Delaine
