On July 8 the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) held a press conference in which they criticized police for officer-involved shootings of black men and used the attack on Dallas Police officers to call for more gun control.
The two officer-involved shootings of black men were the shootings of Alton Sterling (Baton Rouge, LA) and Philando Castile (Falcon Heights, MN).
During the press conference–which aired on C-SPAN 3–Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX-18) spoke on behalf of the CBC, “We ask that the nation sees us as leaders of peace.” She went on to say that the shooting of Dallas Police officers is a wake-up call that “an AR-15 does not discriminate.”
She called on House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) to get recognize the need for gun control, saying, “We’re calling on the passage of no-fly-no-buy.”
Rep. John Lewis (D-GA-5) also spoke at the press conference. He said, “We respect law enforcement.” He went to say, “We have too many guns, there’s been too much violence, we must act.”
Rep. Cedric Richmond (D-LA-2), another speaker, directly and indirectly referenced the officer-involved shootings of black men. He said, “Today is the angriest I’ve ever been while addressing the public and the media. And I share the anger of our young kids.” He described the GOP-run congress as “co-conspirators” in devaluing people of color. He then called on people of all color to join in the fight “against injustice” and called on “Speaker Ryan” to allow votes for banning “AR-15 on our streets” and “high-capacity” magazines.” Rep. Richmond joined Rep. Jackson Lee in calling for the passage of “no-fly-no-buy.”
“Police and protesters were getting along” at the Black Lives Matter rally, said Rep. Marc Veasey (D-TX-33). “The gunmen had nothing to do with the protesters.”
Rep. Veasey then addressed the concern he has for how his son will be treated by police when he grows up:
I have a 10-year-old son. He’s more like his mom… and right now he’s a cute fifth grader… but I worry about him when he gets older, when he gets into high school. What if he’s out with friends and he smarts off the wrong way… and has something happen to him.
Veasey suggested the danger facing his son in coming years “could be prevented with better understanding between the community and the police department.”
Rep. Richmond came back to the microphone to respond to reporters when asked his opinion on the NRA’s lack of comment on the officer-involved shooting of black men in Baton Rouge and Falcon Heights. Richmond said, “The hypocrisy of the NRA is so blatant” … “Their Second Amendment concern is void of concern for African Americans. I believe we cannot give them a pass for not making a comment.”
AWR Hawkins is the Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and political analyst for Armed American Radio. Follow him on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.
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