Buford, May 20, 2024 – Local AAPI leaders in the Atlanta metro area held a press conference in support of gun safety and to denounce Trump’s remarks at the National Rifle Association (NRA) convention over the weekend, where he promised to roll back President Biden’s executive orders designed to reduce gun violence in communities in Georgia and across the country. Nabilah Islam Parkes, Georgia State Senator, Long Tran, Sam Park and Farooq Mughal, Georgia State Representatives, and Tyler Lee, community organizer and high school gun safety advocate, gathered at Fusion Asian Bistro in Buford.
The speakers underscored Donald Trump’s inflammatory anti-Asian rhetoric during the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact of the 2021 Atlanta spa shootings on their community – and the threat a second Trump administration would pose to community safety as Trump continues to cozy up to the NRA. In contrast, they highlighted President Biden’s efforts to address gun violence by passing the most significant gun safety law in nearly 30 years and creating the first-ever White House Office of Gun Violence Protection. The speakers also highlighted the Biden-Harris administration’s efforts to uplift AANHPI voices and combat anti-Asian hate by making it easier to report hate crimes.
“This is not just about politics. It's about the future of our children, of our community, of our country,” said Senator Islam Parkes. “The contrast in this election couldn't be more clear. President Biden and Vice President Harris, along with Democrats, have taken on the gun lobby and prioritized community safety. Meanwhile, Donald Trump's dangerous soft-on-crime agenda shows he can't be trusted to keep the American people safe…He and his Republican backers blocked common-sense gun reform and fought to put more guns on our streets, even making it easier for criminals to carry them. Our community knows all too well the need for more gun safety measures.”
“Families across the state are worried that if Trump and MAGA Republicans are elected, the epidemic of gun violence will only get worse. I'm also deeply concerned what a second Donald Trump term would mean for the safety of my community, especially since he used racist, anti-Asian rhetoric, and scapegoated Asian Americans for his failures during the pandemic that ended up taking the lives of more than 1 million Americans,” said Representative Park.
“Every time we talk about Georgia being number one in business, we also [need to talk] about how we're 46th when it comes to gun safety legislation,” said Representative Mughal. “Businesses in my district are also worried about the lost productivity and revenue. The U.S. economy has lost billions each year because of gun violence…Thanks to the Biden administration for curbing gun violence and pushing for background checks and executive actions to create the first White House office to prevent gun violence.”
“Last week, I attended the funeral of a young man named Timothy Henderson,” said Lee. “He was 18 years old and he graduated from my high school. He was shot and killed as a victim of gun violence in an armed robbery gone wrong. There should be no person so young in a casket. In the United States, it seems…we have an issue where mothers are having to bury their sons and daughters because we have Republicans in our Congress who refuse to do anything about it … Just this weekend, former President Donald Trump was at the National Rifle Association's annual convention in Texas. And I have to say that his commitment to the gun lobby is inappropriate and it needs to be checked. And the way we do that is at the ballot box.”
