The Hampton Roads Green Party stands in solidarity with the loved ones and surviving victims of yet another horrendous mass shooting, this time striking home at the Virginia Beach Municipal Center on Friday, May 31, 2019 which comes on the heels of the mass shooting in the Holly Cove neighborhood in Chesapeake on May 25. We grieve along with our community, the greater Hampton Roads area, our state and our country which has become a sick society exhibited by increasing mass shootings at home and aggressions abroad.

We also share in the outrage over the continued inaction by our elected officials. These tragedies are a symptom of a deeper problem and a harsh truth in our country. To those that may say it is too soon to call for reforms, we must remind them that it is too late for the dead and wounded, it is too late for grieving loved ones, and it is too late for future victims if we do not act now.

We call for:
•the immediate and rapid transition of our Medicare system to Medicare for All that leaves nobody out
(including the politicians and the wealthy), with easy and timely access to mental and physical healthcare;
•nonviolent conflict resolution education;
•thoughtful, carefully considered gun control such as is contained in the Brady Bill (1993). Eliminating the gun show loophole that permits sale of weapons without background checks. Extending background checks to all private sales of firearms (GPUS 2016 Platform pdf p.34)

Ultimately, the root cause of our evils that must also be addressed stems from the love of money, used in politics to enrich the few and divide and conquer the people. In order to heal our societal ills, it will take both the social and political will to bring change that empowers the people over corporate influences like those of the gun lobby.

Every shooting is different. This isn’t just another Virginia Tech or Columbine, or Parkland. Each one takes the lives of many different and diverse individuals who had untold potential to make a difference in the world. We will remember those injured and lost through gun violence in our communities as we continue to work tirelessly for social justice, democracy, ecological wisdom, and a peaceful future for all