“Please join us for a candellight vigil Monday in honor of those lost, injured, families, friends, and community. We will meet between 8:00-8:30pm and walk to the State House. More details will follow please share and feel free to post here. xoxo, The Dark Lady & Alleycat and Stable Family”
A Memorial Service for Pulse Massacre is being planned for Tuesday, June 14, from 6-8pm at the Roger Williams National Memorial, 282 North Main Street, Providence. Directions: https://www.nps.
The service is being co-planned by RI Pride, the Religious Coalition for a Violence-Free Rhode Island and others.
Governor Raimondo is scheduled to be at the vigil on Tuesday.
The Rhode Island State Council of Churches issued the following statement:
RI celebrates Pride this weekend. Pride will be reviewing security for the event with city and state officials today.
There is also an effort underway to remember the victims of the Pulse shooting by wearing black armbands at Pride this weekend. The following note has been making the rounds on Facebook.
“In response to the hate crime at Pulse Orlando, Rhode Island community members have entered a group in the Pride Parade this Saturday, to remember the victims of hate crimes and celebrate Queer and Trans resilience.
You will recognize us at the staging area by our signs. All are welcome to join. All are also encouraged to make signs.
“This is an apolitical contingent, so please let your signage reflect the theme of remembrance and resilience.
Please note that the night of the attack was Latinx night, and largely attended by People of Color, who are not only disproportionately victims of this attack but of anti-Queer/Trans hate crimes in general. So let your signage reflect themes of intersectionality in addition to remembrance and resilience.
“There will be black arm bands available for everyone, including those who are already committed to other groups but wish to observe in that way.”
Representative James Langevin issued the following statement:
“We awoke today to another headline about senseless violence, and yet we are astonished and heartbroken once again with news of the worst mass shooting in United States history. We can never understand or explain the hate that drives someone to commit an atrocity such as this. What we need right now is to reach out to those affected and show our support, because while we mourn as a nation, we cannot allow hate to invade our own hearts or minds. America is better than that.
“This is a tragedy beyond comprehension, and I join the chorus of prayers for both the families of the victims and also the injured who continue to suffer. I pray that no more lives are lost in the wake of this attack.
“My heart breaks for Orlando, and for the LGBT community nationwide. We recognize Pride Month in June, and last night’s shooting was an attack on the very values for which Pride Month stands. The victims were gathered in what should have been a safe space for them to be true to themselves and celebrate our shared belief that all people should be treated equally, and no one should be subjected to violence or discrimination.
“The details of the case continue to unfold, but I have every confidence that local law enforcement, in conjunction with the FBI, will fully investigate what is believed to be an act of terrorism. As a senior member of the House Committee on Homeland Security, I will monitor the investigation closely and in the coming weeks and months I hope my colleagues will come together and take action to ensure we no longer have to wake to headlines of violence. For now, we pray for Orlando, but prayers alone are not enough.”
The Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence (RICAGV) has issued the following statement:
“The tragedy in Orlando, Florida is just the latest reminder that access to deadly weapons of war like the AR-15 has irreversible consequences. The families and friends of the 103 victims will be forever affected and forever wondering why. Our lax gun laws turned hatred into horrific violence in Orlando last night.
“Once again, our Senators and Congressmen send out their tweets, “Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims of this horrendous act in ______________________(fill in the blank).
“The RI Coalition Against Gun Violence is demanding that instead of offering “thoughts and prayers” to the 103 victims of the recent Florida shooting, the general assembly starts voting bills out of committee to make all Rhode Islanders safer.
“Many States including Massachusetts and Connecticut have laws to prevent domestic violence abusers from access to guns. Many States including Massachusetts and Connecticut have banned High capacity magazines. Almost every State including Massachusetts and Connecticut do not allow concealed carry of firearms on K-12 School property.
“Yet, for 3 years in a row, these bills are being “held for further study” here in Rhode Island. You can study your way through law school in three years.
“How much more study do we need to pass common sense legislation to keep guns away from domestic violence abusers (HB 7283, SB2730)? Do we need to wait any longer to ban high capacity magazines over 10 rounds (HB 7199/SB 2835)? Do we need to wait for a tragedy at our K-12 School grounds before we pass HB 7243/ SB 2761)?
“We are urging the Governor, the Speaker and the Senate President to do everything necessary to have these bills voted out of committee. It is time for the Judiciary Committees to stop hiding behind a pretext of study. In a recent poll, the vast majority of Rhode Islanders said they want a vote. It is time to respect not only their wishes but their health and safety as well. We want a vote.
“The Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence is an organization that was created by concerned citizens of Rhode Island. The organization came to be in 2013 after the Rhode Island General Assembly failed to pass common sense gun legislation. We recognize gun violence as a public health issue. Using common sense means and methods, we seek to reduce injuries and deaths from gun violence.”
Representative David Cicilline‘s statement on the Pulse Tragedy:
“Like all Rhode Islanders, I am keeping the people of Orlando, the victims, their families and loved ones in my thoughts and prayers today.”
“It’s outrageous that LGBT Americans continue to be the targets of such horrific hatred and violence in 2016. Don’t let anyone tell you that we have full equality in this country. LGBT people are not political wedge issues – we are human beings and we are entitled to full equality under the law. I hope that, in the aftermath of this horrific shooting, our country will move towards greater love and acceptance of all Americans.”
“Lastly, it is absolutely infuriating to read reports that this shooter used an assault weapon to murder 50 innocent people and wound 53 more. It just should not be this easy for someone to walk into a gun store and walk out armed with a weapon of war that is designed to kill as many people as quickly as possible.”
“As we saw in Charleston last year, lone wolf terrorists are a threat to all of us. We simply cannot continue to live in a country where it’s easier to buy an AR-15 than it is to buy cold medicine.
“Access to these weapons is a threat to our public safety, and it’s time for Republicans in Congress to come to the table and restore some sanity to our nation’s gun laws.”
Full video and statement from President Barrack Obama on the tragedy here.
Senator Jack Reed writes, “This was a horrific attack. Our condolences go out to the victims and their families, and our thanks to the brave first responders and fellow citizens who did everything they could to help. While investigators are still gathering all the facts, the shooter was clearly a hate-filled individual. His bigotry has no place in our society. We are a resilient nation and we stand in solidarity with the LGBT community. Right now there are more questions than answers, but law enforcement will get to the bottom of this and every federal resource will be made available to ensure they do.”
Speaker Nicholas Mattiello wrote his first ever tweet about the tragedy, but some took issue with the Speaker, asking him to pass some common sense gun bills out of committee and bring them to the floor for a vote.
GPSJenn wrote, “@RISpeaker thoughts & prayers? That’s all you got? U r a lawmaker. Make some laws. Shooter was a wife beater. Pass H7575 to make #RI safer.”
His A+ rating from the NRA was noted as well.
Governor Gina Raimondo has ordered that all flags be lowered to half-mast “until sunset on June 16, 2016 in honor of the victims of the shooting in Orlando.” This is in accordance with President Barrack Obama‘s national proclamation.
Her full statement:
“In accordance with a Presidential Proclamation, Governor Gina M. Raimondo has ordered U.S. and Rhode Island flags to be flown at half-staff at all state facilities and buildings. The flags will remain at half-staff until sunset on June 16, 2016 in honor of the victims of the shooting in Orlando.
“‘We woke up this morning to horrific news – a senseless, cowardly mass shooting in Orlando. It’s an act of terror. It’s an act of hatred. And it has no place in our communities. Like so many, I feel incredible sadness and outrage,’ Raimondo said.
“‘Our prayers are with the victims and their loved ones, but we must do more than pray. It is time to take greater action to keep America safe,’ Raimondo continued. ‘I also want our LGBT brothers and sisters in Rhode Island to know that our hearts are with you – we will redouble our efforts to keep you safe and free from fear, and commit to building a more peaceful, more tolerant society.’
“There are no specific threats in Rhode Island at this time, but the Governor remains in close touch with Colonel O’Donnell of the State Police, and security efforts will be increased around Pride festivities.
“Raimondo also asks Rhode Islanders to lower their flags as a mark of respect.”
RI Pride‘s statement on the tragedy in Orlando can be read here.
In the wake of the terrible incident at the Orlando nightclub, AIDS Project RI and the Family Services of RI shared some tips:
Music was provided by the bands Saints and Saviours, Select Band and Me Jane.
According to the Wear Orange website, “On January 21st, 2013, Hadiya Pendleton, a 15-year-old high school student from the south side of Chicago, marched in President Obama’s 2nd inaugural parade. One week later, Hadiya was shot and killed.
“Orange is the color a group of Hadiya’s friends chose to wear to remember her life. They chose orange because that’s what hunters wear in the woods to protect themselves and others.”
Moms has been working tirelessly to pass a law that would disarm domestic abusers, H7575 and S2767. So far these bills have not made it out of committee, despite the support of a clear majority of Rhode Islanders.
]]>Jerry Belair, President of the Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence (RICAGV) had hinted at the poll results during the recent rally against gun violence outside the State House, but yesterday the coalition released the full poll on Rhode Islander’s attitudes towards some common sense gun legislation currently under review by the General Assembly, and the numbers were staggering.
Remarkably, in Speaker Nicholas Mattiello‘s own district, the numbers for keeping guns out of the hands of domestic abusers is higher than the state wide pol, at 95%. Mattiello has an ‘A’ rating from the National Rifle association (NRA) and has been obstinately opposed to any proposed gun legislation. In the case of ethics reform, it took a disaster to change the Speaker’s mind. Is the Speaker waiting for another kind of disaster to occur before he gets behind common sense gun reform?
You can watch the full press conference below. The bills under consideration are: No Guns in Schools (H7243, S2761), Disarm Domestic Abusers (H7283, S2730, S2491) and the High Capacity Magazine Ban (H7199, S2835)
You can access the full poll here.
]]>The RICAGV (Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence) held their second annual rally outside the State House, reaffirming their support for three critical pieces of legislation that would ban guns on school grounds, take guns away from domestic abusers and limit magazine capacity to ten rounds. The General Assembly has shown little appetite for these bills in past years, though there are some signs that some sort of compromise bill on keeping guns out of the hands of domestic abusers might pass this year.
This rally comes after a punishing Senate Judiciary hearing Tuesday night that lasted until after midnight. (I’ll have a piece on that over the weekend.) Speaking about Tuesday night’s hearing, Jerry Belair, president of the RICAGV, said that though he doesn’t like to speak ill of any elected officials, Senators Stephen R. Archambault (Democrat District 22, Smithfield, North Providence, Johnston) and Frank S. Lombardi (Democrat – Distict 26, Cranston), “did more testifying than almost anybody else. They seemed to be unwilling to listen.”
Between the first three witnesses, all representing the gun lobby, and the Senators own “testimony” it took three hours before a single member of the public representing the other side of the argument could testify, said Belair. When his side finally got to speak, said Belair, the Senators did everything they could to interrupt and disagree, “doing everything they could to not make us as effective” in delivering our message.
Belair teased a poll that the RICAGV will be releasing soon that indicates that Rhode Islanders, 3 to 1, want a ten round magazine limit. The same poll says 4 to 1 Rhode Islanders don’t want guns in schools (contrary to Senator Lombardi’s fantasy scenario spelled out here), and 92 percent of Rhode Islanders don’t want domestic violence offenders to possess guns.
The bills to disarm domestic abusers are House Bill 7283 and Senate Bill 2730.
The bills to keep guns out of schools is House Bill 7243 and Senate Bill 2761.
The bills to ban high capacity magazines are House Bill 7199 and Senate Bill 2835.
The RICAGV is encouraging Rhode Islanders to contact their elected officials and demand their support.
Below is all the music and speakers from the rally, plus plenty of pictures.
]]>“I’m just here to take notes and a few pictures,” I said, “for RI Future.”
Pause. “We’re not set up yet,” said the man, “you’ll have to wait.”
“Okay,” I said, “I’ll sit over at the picnic tables.”
“Sure,” said the man, “Why not? It’s a beautiful day out.”
It was. I sat for a few minutes, reading my phone, when another man holding a clipboard approached me. We introduced ourselves. He was Leo Skenyon, Nicholas Mattiello’s chief of staff.
“I don’t know if we can get you in,” said Skenyon, “We’ve got over 130 people coming, and priority will be given to Cranston residents.”
“Okay, “ I said, “I get that. I can stand. I just need to take some notes and a few pictures.”
“We might get you into the basement with a TV,” said Skenyon, “You’ll be able to hear the answers, but you might not hear the questions.”
“We’ll see what happens then,” I said.
I waited outside near the entrance, watching people arrive. I saw two people from the Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence (RICAGV) handing flyers to passers by. One of them was Tom Wojick.
“Do you support common sense gun legislation?” asked Tom, holding out a flyer to a man and his wife.
“No,” said the man, “I’m a NRA member.”
I had taken a bus on a Saturday morning to the middle of Cranston to see Representative Nicholas Mattiello, the Speaker of the House and arguably the most powerful politician in Rhode Island, engage with his constituents.
This isn’t an every day occurrence. Some reps have regular events with their constituents, some have none, but as Mattiello told the crowd, his duties as Speaker take up a lot of time, and he doesn’t often get the chance to hold events like this. Today was a rare chance to see Mattiello engage with his constituents and hear what voters in Mattiello’s district care the most about. [Spoiler: It’s RhodeWorks]
Mattiello wasn’t alone either on stage or behind the scenes. Organizing the event were about a dozen men delivering coffee and donuts, escorting people to their seats and acting as what seemed like de facto security. There were two Cranston police officers stationed at the event. In addition to Leo Skenyon, who was organizing, I saw Larry Berman, communications director for the RI House of Reps, helping out.
On “stage” with Mattiello were RI State Senators Frank Lombardi and Hanna Gallo, Rep Robert Jacquard and RI Department of Transportation director Peter Alviti, there to answer technical questions about truck tolls and RhodeWorks.
When I entered the Grange Larry Berman saw me and said, “He can come in,” but behind me Leo Skenyon said, “He’s taking a couple of pictures and heading downstairs.”
That’s what I did. Here’s one:
Downstairs in front of the TV was a man who was interested in RhodeWorks but happened to live in Providence, so he was sent to the basement with me. A minute later we were joined by Lorraine Savard, wearing a small version of her “Save Burrillvile: No New Power Plant” sign pinned to her lapel.
At least I was in good company.
We ended up watching everything on closed circuit TV, downstairs from the main event. We laughed when the camera upstairs went to a wide shot, showing at least seven empty seats in the main room. We laughed again when we noticed that the two police officers were in the downstairs room with us, leaving no police presence in the room above, where over one hundred people were in attendance.
Most of Mattiello’s talk was a defense of RhodeWorks. One idea the Speaker was keen to dispel was that RhodeWorks was broadly unpopular. He said that he has in his district 14 thousand constituents and 10 thousand registered voters. When he counted the number of emails he received opposed to RhodeWorks, it was thirty.
“I don’t believe that,” said the man from Providence sitting next to me.
But I don’t think Mattiello lied. People in Mattiello’s district aren’t that upset about RhodeWorks, or at least not upset enough to threaten him politically. Mattiello maintains that the reason people don’t like RhodeWorks is because they are misinformed about it.
“We have a talk radio community,” said Mattiello, “misinformation gets out through that medium” either through callers saying things that aren’t true or talk show hosts repeating false information.
“Misinformation takes your vote away from you,” said the Speaker.
Lombardi and Jacquard also defended their RhodeWorks votes. Lombardi said, “We live in a post 38 Studios world. RhodeWorks opposition is based on a distrust of [any] legislation, not on the plan itself.”
Gallo went a different direction, touting the work she does on education, including full day kindergarten.
Eventually the question and answer phase of the discussion, nearly three hours into the event, got around to a subject other than RhodeWorks. A woman (it was very hard to hear the specifics of her question on the TV) asked about the three bills the RICAGV has brought forward, including the bill to prohibit people with concealed carry permits from bringing guns into schools.
“There are two sides to this issue,” said Mattiello (who incidently has an A+ rating from the NRA), “There are those who want no change [to our guns laws] and there are those who want to abolish guns.”
This opening surprised me. The RICAGV has worked hard to strike a nuanced position on guns, and here Mattiello was claiming that the group was simply seeking to abolish all guns.
As for guns in schools, said the Speaker, “Please tell me where this has been a problem. And if its never been a problem, you’re affecting the rights of law abiding citizens.”
Mattiello gave the hypothetical situation oaf a man with a concealed carry permit picking his kid up at school. Is he supposed “to leave his gun on the sidewalk? Leave it in his car where it might be stolen, or drive home and drop it off first?”
“In trying to solve a problem you’re creating a bigger problem,” said the Speaker.
Guns are not allowed in courthouses or airports, countered the woman (and I might add, not allowed in the State House where Mattiello works either.)
Senator Lombardi cut in at this point, saying that the problem isn’t gun owners, it’s the mentally ill accessing guns. Columbine and Sandy Hook were the results of mental illness, said Lombardi, not lack of gun control.
“If,” said Lombardi, “God forbid, a [gunman] goes into a Cranston school, I hope the first person he sees is a law abiding citizen with a concealed carry permit.”
“We have to address the mental health aspect of this equation,” added Mattiello, “People with concealed carry permits are not the problem. I don’t think they’ve ever been the problem.”
Mattiello’s last words on the issue of guns were, “You can affect the behavior of people who respect the law, but not the behavior of those who don’t respect the law.”
That kind of makes me wonder why we pass any laws.
The next question was about the ethics commission.
“Senator Sheehan’s bill is the worst bill I’ve ever seen,” said Mattiello, “I can’t imagine supporting that bill because it make’s no sense to me.”
“Conflict of interest rules are ‘gotcha’ politics,” said the Speaker, “lawyers in the General Assembly serve clients across the country. Technically they are always in conflict of interest. They would never vote!”
Mattiello feels that Sheehan’s bill will encourage “frivolous complaints”. “What’s going to happen is good people are not going to want to run [for office],” said the Speaker.
“Most people in government are extremely ethical,” continued Mattiello, “Everybody up there, I believe, is entirely ethical and good.”
Mattiello seems to believe that the job of identifying conflicts of interest falls to the fourth estate, saying, “Kathy Gregg is a great reporter. She points out every conflict of interest.”
Somewhat echoing his last word on gun control laws, Mattiello said about ethics, “Ethics commissions don’t make better people. That’s [the electorate]’s job.”
Other random things of interest Mattiello said during the meeting:
“I disagree that the Speaker is the most powerful person in the state. Sometimes it’s the governor.”
Ex-Speaker Gordon Fox, now in prison, “had his problems but he did good things policy wise.”
“I don’t believe in trickle-down economics. I just want to be competitive with our neighboring states.”
“Rhode Island right now is in excellent shape.”
]]>Todos Somo Arizona (TSAZ) is a coalition of groups including Jobs with Justice, English for Action, Fuerza Laboral, Comite de Inmigrantes, RI Interfaith Coalition, 32BJSEIU RI, AFCS, Estudios Biblicos and ONA, that is holding a series of actions at the State House to keep attention focused on the issue and on Tuesday activists were loud and their presence was felt, even in the midst of a Second Amendment Rights rally happening at roughly the same time.
At least 400 2nd Amendment Coalition members turned out to pressure the House Judiciary Committee on a raft of bills being heard concerning guns. Nearly 100 members of the Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence (RICAGV) turned out to have their say on the bills as well.
This lead to some friction, like when former candidate for Mayor of Warwick Stacia Huyler decided to chide the Licenses for All coalition for being too loud. The irony of a Second Amendment activist complaining about people using their First Amendment rights was lost on Huyler.
The issue of granting driver’s licenses to undocumented immigrants is not going away. Everyone, regardless of status, deserves to be allowed to function in our society, and until this becomes the law in Rhode Island, these protests will continue.
Here’s all of this year’s coverage of the issue from RI Future:
The Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence (RICAGV) is backing three bills.
H7283 would take away guns from those convicted of domestic violence misdemeanors.
“Rhode Island law prohibits gun ownership and possession by individuals convicted of a domestic violence felony,” says the RICAGV, “This law is weaker than federal law which prohibits gun ownership and possession by those convicted of domestic violence misdemeanors. There is ample evidence that misdemeanor domestic violence offenders present an extreme risk to domestic partners when in possession of a firearm. Rhode Island should help protect the victims of domestic violence, not their abusers.”
H7243 would close a loophole that allows guns in schools and on school grounds.
“Concealed Carry Permit (CCP) holders can carry their weapons ‘everywhere’ including schools, but not in RI courthouses, airports and most government buildings,” says the RICAGV, “RI’s concealed carry law came into existence in 1990, long before Columbine and other school shootings, so schools were not exempted at that time. Currently, any CCP holder (staff, parent, visitor) can carry a firearm on school grounds including the school, surrounding property, parking lots, and after school sporting events and gatherings without knowledge of police or school officials.”
H7199, a high capacity magazine (HCM) ban, limits the number of rounds in a weapon to 10.
“Limiting HCMs to 10 rounds saves lives,” says the RICAGV, “Limiting rounds in a magazine requires that a shooter pause to change out the magazine. The shooter in Sandy Hook Elementary School killed 20 small children in less than 5 minutes with HCMs. Evidence reveals that several children escaped the schoolroom when his magazine jammed and he was forced to reload. Similarly, the shooter in the Gabby Gifford Tucson, AZ mass shooting was disarmed when he dropped his HCM clip during reloading. This enabled bystanders to subdue him saving lives.”
]]>Those three bills have just been reintroduced in the House.
H7199 criminalizes the manufacture, import, possession, purchase, sale or transfer of any ammunition feeding device capable of accepting more than ten rounds. Two years ago, when this bill was first introduced, Jerry Belair, president of the Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence asked the following question, “Rhode Island law limits the number of rounds to five when hunting deer. Rhode Island law limits the number of rounds to three when hunting ducks. If we can limit the number of rounds in a firearm to protect deer and ducks, how can we not limit the number of rounds to protect our children and citizens?”
H7243 provides that only peace officers and persons approved by the school authorities for the purposes of educational instruction may carry firearms or other weapons on school grounds. A similar bill was introduced last year and died in committee. Apparently the idea that someone might bring a gun into a school in Rhode Island without the knowledge of school administrators does not bother our legislature.
H7283 prohibits any person convicted of a misdemeanor offense under §12-29-2 (a crime involving domestic violence) from purchasing, owning, transporting, carrying, or possessing any firearm. A similar bill submitted last year died in committee after Frank Saccoccio of the Second Amendment Coalition successfully mischaracterized the bill as a gun grab in both the House and Senate committee meetings.
Last year a poll indicated that 80 percent of Rhode Islanders want to keep guns out of the hands of domestic abusers, yet when it came time for action, the General Assembly, under the leadership of Speaker Mattiello deemed the bills above “not very consequential” and “just not as important.”
What has to change in Rhode Island before common sense gun legislation can be passed? Mattiello has an A+ (100 percent) rating with the National Rifle Association (NRA). Senate President M Teresa Paiva-Weed has an A (93 percent) rating from the NRA.
]]>A sense of optimism was expressed by many speakers at last night’s Interfaith Memorial Vigil, held at the Second Free Will Baptist Church in Providence. Despite the steady, deadly drumbeat of mass shootings and the hysteria being generated by the Republican presidential front runner over refugees and Muslims, forces are beginning to coalesce around a series of reforms to our gun laws on both the sate and national level.
The day before Governor Gina Raimondo held “a two-hour discussion… about ways to reduce gun violence” and though the NRA was represented through the Second Amendment Coalition‘s Frank Saccoccio, his views did not dominate the discussion, a far cry from what is usually seen at the State House, where legislators seem to treat his every word and opinion as gospel.
Former State Representative Linda Finn, one of the founders of the Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence (RICAGV) talked about Saccoccio at the governor’s discussion when she addressed the crowd.
“Yesterday I got to sit in on the governor’s round table discussion,” said Finn, “and it was wonderful because one of the guys who comes to every hearing and just throws out so many lies and misperceptions had three judges sitting there telling him, ‘That’s just not true, what you’re saying, it just doesn’t happen… When a domestic violence charge is issued it’s not two people [who are typically charged] it’s just one person. It’s not two people. [Saccoccio] was saying that most of the time it’s two people that get charged. And if a woman gets charged then she can’t carry a gun to protect herself [from her abuser]. And our politicians and our legislators believe that. And one of the judges who sits on the court she said, ‘I have 800 cases that I’ve been dealing with this year and I only had one situation where two people [were charged with domestic violence.]’”
Last year, said Finn, “was the first time we had more people who were for the gun bills than [the gun proponents] did.”
These facts give Finn hope that this will be the year that real gun reforms bills could pass out of the General Assembly. Specifically a bill to ban domestic abusers from owning or purchasing guns, and a bill to prevent people with conceal/carry permits from bringing those guns into public schools.
Also of particular interest were the words of Imam Farid Ansari. “Obviously the Islamic community has been affected by this scourge of gun violence,” said Ansari, but, “Let me assure you that the images that are being portrayed in regard to Islam is not the true picture of Islam… As an American I myself most certainly condemn these acts of violence that are being perpetrated in the name of Islam.”
Ansari talked about the current climate of Muslim scapegoating and fear mongering. “There is a vocabulary emerging today that is unfortunately being focused on the Islamic community. We hear the words jihadist, terrorist, fundamentalist, all these words are words that are designed to inflame and incite the passions of the people… It’s an evil. It literally is an evil.
“Don’t be persuaded by this vocabulary, of this image being portrayed about Islam. And please do not listen to – I don’t know how to describe him – but you know who I’m talking about.,” said Ansari, getting laughs for his allusion to Donald Trump.
“This portrayal of us as a menace,” said Ansari to a standing ovation, “is absolutely evil.”
I’ll have a full 90 minute video later today of the entire Vigil, but for now I’ll leave you with two more speakers. First up is The Reverend Jametta Alston of the United Church of Christ giving a rousing sermon against gun with a powerful reference to the Biblical commandment “Thou shall not kill.”
And here’s Jennifer Smith Boylan speaking about her awakening to the issue of gun violence in the wake of the Sandy Hook shootings and her involvement with Moms Demand Action.
]]>Time and again Saccoccio made statements that were refuted by Rachel Orsinger, representing the Rhode Island Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Julia Wyman, representing the Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence (RICAGV).
Saccoccio claims that the bill before the committee is the same as the bill presented last year. The bill did not pass and Saccoccio implied that though his organization was willing to help make some changes to the bill’s language that would allow the bill to pass, no one asked for the 2nd Amendment Coalition’s opinion. “We haven’t seen this bill until it was brought forward now,” he said.
This seems contrary to the statement by Rachel Orsinger, who thanked the Committee Chairman Cale Keable, the 2nd Amendment Coalition, the RICAGV, various law enforcement people, the Attorney General and the Public Defender’s office who “sat in very hot, very long meetings last year to come up with the language” in the bill, “That everyone could agree to, at least last year.”
Julia Wyman also remembered the “roundtable discussion last year, and all the major stakeholders were involved… including… two members of the 2nd Amendment group…” Wyman found it “rather incredulous” that the 2nd Amendment Coalition cannot support a bill they helped to craft.
Perhaps it’s Saccoccio’s strategy to obfuscate the issue. Time and again he prefaced his statements with some variation of, “Those of you who are lawyers will understand,” as if those in the room who are not lawyers will never be able to get their heads around the complex legal definitions of misdemeanors and petty misdemeanors. Fortunately, Rachel Orsinger was able to clear up the confusion Saccoccio sowed.
“I know there’s been some confusion around petty misdemeanors and misdemeanors,” said Orsinger, “those are two separate legal categories, just like book worms and worms are not the same thing, just because they have one of the same words in there.”
Lawyers in the room who work in family court, said Saccoccio, know that family court judges are “very very liberal” and likely to “err on the side of caution” when issuing protective orders. But, that’s the way the system is designed, pointed out Orsinger, once again cutting through the fog of Saccoccio’s words. It’s only after a judge makes a final decision that a permanent firearm restriction is put in place.
“Even if there’s no nexus to a firearm,” an indignant Saccoccio said, even if “there’s no allegation that a firearm was ever used,” a domestic abuser might lose his guns under this law.
“If someone is routinely showing that they have power and control over ending your life,” countered Orsinger, “knowing that they have a gun is an inherent threat.”
This legislation binds judges hands, offerred Saccocio. The word used to be “may” as in “a judge ‘may’ remove a domestic abuser’s guns.” That word has become “shall.” In Saccoccio’s opinion, judges should have discretion. Of course, other states, even states as gun friendly as Louisiana, use the word “shall” in similar legislation, said Orsinger.
Ultimately Saccoccio got to the end of his testimony by telling the assembled Representatives the same story he told the Senate weeks earlier. Saccoccio told of a “seminal case” in which a man with a protective order against him ran into his wife three times by coincidence, and was charged with violating the order. In Saccoccio’s telling of the case, the man was coincidentally holding the door for his wife when they ran into each other at the post office, and another time the man innocuously waved to his wife as he passed her while driving.
According to Orsinger, such stories tend to minimize what victims of domestic violence go through. “For those of us who have had healthy relationships in our lives,” she said, “it seems really reasonable that even in the most animosity filled divorce… you can bring a coffee to court just to be nice. But to the person who always got a Starbucks Latte the morning after they were brutally beaten, a Starbucks Latte means something different. It can be an inherently violent act to violate a restraining order… What it says to that victim is that no court can hold me back, no police can hold me back… I can get to you whenever.”
Saccoccio’s performance seemed doubly unnecessary when we remember that the bill under discussion simply brings state and federal law into alignment. It doesn’t do anything but close a loophole. “Already, under federal law,” said Julia Wyman, “if you commit a domestic violence misdemeanor, you are barred from owning a firearm for life.”
“By the time someone gets a conviction” for domestic violence, added Rachel Orsinger, “they’ve either… committed a felony assault that’s now been pled down to a simple assault… or this is their seventh or eighth time being arrested.”
“But don’t get me wrong,” said Frank Saccoccio, “we are not supporting or in any way… advocating for domestic violence. It should not be condoned or supported in any way.”
Frank Saccoccio and the 2nd Amendment Coalition say they agree with Wyman on the need, “to take firearms out of the hands of abusive people,” but until he supports this common sense legislation, his bewildering word clouds are “full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”
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