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Boston Globe
a day ago
- Politics
- Boston Globe
David Hogg, AFL-CIO leaders lobby for competing versions of R.I. ban on assault-style weapons
Advertisement Hogg, who was Get Rhode Map A weekday briefing from veteran Rhode Island reporters, focused on the things that matter most in the Ocean State. Enter Email Sign Up 'Safety in our communities will only come with both,' he said, 'and as Democrats, we should accept nothing less.' Hogg Advertisement Hogg's statement came from the Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence, which is lobbying for the House bill and emphasizing that it is the only Rhode Island-based gun safety advocacy group. The The Senate version is backed by the Rhode Island AFL-CIO, which includes the National Education Association Rhode Island, whose leader is Senate President Valarie J. Lawson. Rhode Island AFL-CIO President Patrick Crowley and Secretary-Treasurer Karen Hazard, issued a statement on Thursday, saying they 'stand in full support of' the Senate bill and 'applaud the Rhode Island state Senate for moving forward with this important piece of legislation.' They noted that when the AFL-CIO conducted 'The bill under consideration accomplishes that goal,' Crowley and Hazard said. 'We urge full passage of the bill by the state Senate and respectfully ask the House of Representatives to take up the measure as soon as possible.' The Senate version of the bill is at Edward Fitzpatrick can be reached at
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Each side on RI's proposed 'assault weapons ban' is rallying the troops. What they're saying.
PROVIDENCE – The opposing sides in this year's battle over a proposed "assault weapons" ban began their rallying campaigns days ago. The gun lobby has spent days trying to get as many Rhode Island gun owners as possible into gun stores to pick up yellow "2nd Amendment" T-shirts in the hopes that they'll wear them to the State House on Wednesday so lawmakers see how many people oppose the ban, which is up for hearing that day. "Of course if you're in a pinch, any yellow shirt will work," the local organizing group, RI Gun Rights, advised on its website. The other side in this perennial debate – the side that believes the fewer "military-style" weapons on the street, the less chance of a mass shooting – has put out an urgent call to its own backers to show up wearing orange. "This is one of the most important days at the State House to make our voices heard," the Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence wrote in an email blast. "The gun extremists will be out in full force and we need to have a great presence!" A recent poll conducted for the Rhode Island AFL-CIO by the well-established Fleming & Associates found 64% of Rhode Islanders support a ban on the sale and manufacture of "assault weapons." And the chances of passage appeared better at the start of this legislative session than they have in years, with majority support in both chambers and Senate President Dominick Ruggerio leaving the door open for the first time. The proposed ban is one of several bills on the House Judiciary agenda that is vehemently opposed by gun owners who, in scores of letters sent to the lawmakers in advance of the hearing, describe the legislation as an affront to their 2nd Amendment right to bear arms. Here is a sampling of the written testimony that continues to stream in from both sides: "Let me tell you who we are," wrote Scott Adams of West Warwick. "We are sportsmen, we enjoy anything from simple target practice, skills competition, hunting and even collecting antique firearms." "We are responsible. We keep our firearms stored in a safe manner. We are not the people you see in the movies, sitting at the kitchen table, with a pile of drugs, alcohol, stacks of cash and loaded firearms scattered around the kitchen. In fact, the gun range I go to has a sign before you walk in that says, 'if you smell of marijuana for any reason, you will be asked to leave'." "We have a constitutional right to keep and bear arms," he wrote. His solution to the perceived gun problem? "I believe school kids should be educated in the safe handling of firearms. We need to lock criminals up for committing crimes. There needs to be better programs for helping the mentally ill," and better control of video games, he wrote. From the other side came this letter from Maureen Mooney of Newport: "I am tired on reading about shooters going in schools and public spaces and killing people. This needs to stop." "We cannot continue to put these guns in the hands of those who have proven anger issues. Please pass this common-sense gun safety bill out of committee and to the House floor with a recommendation for passage,'' she begged. Another from the pro-gun side: "How many times has one lunatic shot up a bar or a crowd for no reason at Any-Place USA? And the media eats it up, jumping on the opportunity to put this random act of violence in everyone's face and drumming up fear that guns are public enemy number one," wrote Aaron Laramee. "This is pushed all over the media as a 'mass shooting.' Sounds scary, doesn't it? It's supposed to! That's how 'woke/progressive' groups get the un-knowing/un-thinking anti-gun public behind them," Laramee continued. "They want you to believe that every time you go out in public there's an incredible risk of being shot by these 'Pro-Gunner,' '2nd Amendment lunatics.'" "I will NOT register ANY of my firearms!" he vowed. And this from the pro-ban side: Bruce Daigle, a retired principal at St. Patrick Academy, a small Catholic high school on Smith Hill, offered a different perspective on the "psychological impact" of the repeated "active shooter drills ... our students will go through almost 200 times before they graduate." "Living [with] the fear of annihilation as these children sit in a classroom, church, or theater, or walk through a shopping mall is as much an assault on them as the violent acts they prepare to face," he wrote. A sampling: Assault Weapons Ban: Rep. Jason Knight is the lead sponsor of H5436, co-sponsored by more than half the House, that contains a long list of features on what would qualify as an "assault weapon." Juvenile records: Rep. Carol McEntee is the lead sponsor of H5651 to allow disclosure of juvenile criminal records for firearm background checks. Hate crime exclusion: Rep. Jennifer Boylan is the lead sponsor of H5652 precluding anyone who has pleaded nolo or been convicted of a misdemeanor "hate" crime from purchasing, owning or possessing a firearm. Expunged records: On behalf of the attorney general, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Robert Craven introduced H5889 allowing a law enforcement agency to consider expunged records when issuing a license or permit to carry a pistol or revolver, and Rep. Edith Ajello introduced H5891 to disqualify individuals with prior felony convictions from purchasing or possessing a firearm. Concealed carry permits: Rep. Kathleen Fogarty is the lead sponsor of H5654 to prohibit local licensing authorities from issuing a concealed carry permit to out-of-state residents based on permits issued by authorities from other states. Republicans, led by freshman Rep. Richard Fascia, have introduced H5935 to allow out-of-state concealed carry permits in some cases. Firearm licenses: A group of pro-gun Republicans and Democrats, led by Rep. Thomas Noret, a retired police officer, have introduced H5936 to create an appeal process for denied applications to carry a handgun. This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: RI assault weapons ban bill will bring hundreds out to the State House
