Former Congresswoman and victim of gun violence Gabrielle Giffords delivered short but stirring opening remarks on Wednesday in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee.
"Speaking is difficult, but I need to say something important,” said Giffords, with her husband Mark Kelly by her side.
Wednesday marks the beginning of the showdown regarding proposed federal gun control laws in the US.
A victim of gun violence, Giffords urged the Senate Judiciary Committee to “be bold, be courageous” in their coming decisions.
In January 2011, Giffords was among more than a dozen injured at a shootout in her district in Arizona. She suffered serious injuries, which have in turn affected her speech as evidenced in her brief yet stirring remarks on Wednesday.
“Americans are counting on you,” said Giffords.
While the debate on gun control in the US has always lingered, it has renewed its vigor since the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut in December that claimed the lives of 26 people.
“Violence is a big problem,” said Giffords. “Too many children are dying. Too many children.”
Here, watch Giffords’ speech:
4 Comments
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.McNamara31 | Jan 31, 2013, 01:25 PM EST
Springfield9 "Here we go with the children again" Your statement makes me want to vomit at your TOTAL lack of empathy. Yes, one child is one too many! In 2010 alone the CDC reported that 4,097 children and young adults between the ages of 1 and 24 died after being shot by someone else. But I guess that not even a blip on your calloused radar. It has to hit home for someone like you to wake up.
joanxis | Jan 31, 2013, 01:17 PM EST
Springfield9 What if that 1 was one of your loved ones. How would you feel? Oh well, she/he was just one of the 300,000,000 of us.
Nicomax | Jan 31, 2013, 12:55 PM EST
Not sure how many children are lost each year to gun fire, but our rate of killing by guns remains by far the highest in the developed world. Should we be proud of this fact? Some are because it says unlike those other wimpy countries, we are a 'manly' nation ready to take on all comers.
Springfield9 | Jan 31, 2013, 10:32 AM EST
Here we go with the children again. Exactly how many children are dying over a 10 year average? OH, and I detest that "even if it saves one life" line .... there are 300,000,000 of us.