Responsible steps available to curb gun violence
To the Editor:
On March 24, marches took place across the country regarding gun violence in the United States and protesting a lack of action to address it. In many cases, these marches were driven by youth involvement. To see so many of our nation’s young people come together to demonstrate peacefully is special and, at its core, exactly what makes our Republic great.
We have some problem-solving to do. The violence gripping our schools is unacceptable. There are common sense measures available that can help do two things: make our schools and communities safer and protect the rights of responsible gun owners. We can do both those things and we must.
I support universal background checks, like more than 90 percent of Americans. I support closing the gun show loopholes because not only are they dangerous, they allow gun shows to play by a different set of rules than our Minnesota gun shops.
Extreme risk protection orders, which could keep firearms out of the hands of dangerous people while still affording every citizen their right to due process, should be a high priority. State law should also clarify that bump stocks are illegal in Minnesota. If automatic weapons are banned in this country, any device that makes a legal semiautomatic weapon behave like one should be banned too.
These are responsible steps to keep firearms out of the hands of dangerous people, but they’re not perfect.
That’s why I support putting money toward making our schools safer and allowing school districts to determine what safety improvements can be made to keep their students from harm.
Finally, giving our schools the resources they need to look after their students’ mental health is a smart investment. Minnesota’s counselor-to-student ratio is one of the worst in the nation. Access to social workers, counselors, and psychologists would save lives and keep the tragedy and turmoil of gun violence from impacting our communities.
Gun violence is a difficult problem but we have the tools to address it. Let’s use them.
Rep. Rob Ecklund can be reached at the Capitol by email at rep.rob.ecklund@house.mn or by phone at 651-296-2190.
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