Statement by Former Vice President Al Gore on the Shooting at Robb Elementary School

Nearly 10 years ago, 20 children were slaughtered in their classrooms in Newtown, CT. And nearly 10 years later, it’s happened again in Uvalde, TX. As a parent and a grandparent, I can’t imagine the pain and horrific loss that the families of Uvalde are feeling today as they wake up with an empty bed where their child should be.

Once again, we are confronted with this uniquely American form of devastation triggered by yet another mass shooting. Once again, we will go through a painfully familiar cycle of grief and outrage.

After 19 children are shot dead in their school, is enough, enough? After Black women and men are killed in a hate-fueled and racist attack on a grocery store in Buffalo, is enough, enough? How many children, mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, and loved ones will be stolen from us before we take action?

From Columbine to Uvalde, we have failed to keep our children safe because of the stranglehold the gun lobby has on our democracy. It’s time for those who have obstructed the common-sense measures that will keep dangerous weapons out of the hands of mass-murders to put the lives of their fellow Americans over their quest for campaign contributions. It is long past time to pass common-sense gun legislation.