The recent gun violence and mass shootings – including in Uvalde, Texas where an 18-year-old is accused of shooting and killing 19 elementary school students – have triggered public outrage, student marches, and renewed calls for broad legislative action.

“We need to make sure everyone knows it is their responsibility to be involved. No matter who you are, no matter what you believe in: You need to be involved in this fight because it is literally children fighting for their lives,” said Zoë Geller-Alford, a Point Loma High School junior involved in the June 9 student activist march from the Hall of Justice to Waterfront Park.

“It’s enough about thoughts and prayers. It’s enough saying, ‘We need to do something.’ There’s a pattern of politicians funded by the National Rifle Association saying they’re going to do something – and then legislation gets stalled. We need to register to vote and get everyone registered to vote. We need to make sure that young people have a say in the changes that happen in this country,” Geller-Alford said.

“It was definitely a reaction to the Uvalde shooting,” said Theo Martien, co-organizer of the June 9 student march talking about how it came about. “I just reached out to Zoe about getting something organized to get our voice heard. And here we are.”

The pair led a lineup of youthful speakers addressing gun violence before marching and chanting to Waterfront Park at the County Administration Center where more young activists were offered an opportunity to share their thoughts and grief.

Another anti-gun violence activist, PLHS alum Will Barton, spoke out from his artist’s studio where he uses his mouth to paint emotional artwork offering glimpses into his reality and recovery 10 years after he was shot multiple times and left for dead in 2012.

Given almost no chance for survival, the now 30-year-old Barton has since used the shooting as a force for good in creating art and spreading the message that survival, recovery, and hope are possible after life-changing physical injuries and emotional trauma.

“I want to explicitly speak on how devastating gun violence is,” said Barton. “There won’t be a day, not even a minute, that I will live without the extreme injuries I sustained by those three hollow-tip bullets shredding through my head and body 10 years ago. In a split second, the future I had envisioned was taken from me forever. It’s now time for a serious and permanent change to combat the horrid events we have seen as of late. I am hopeful for the future, But it’s had an enormously devastating impact on me and my entire family.”

Added Barton: “High-caliber automatic weapons are unnecessary in our society. I want to see more victim advocacy groups, more mental health resources, and measures for gun safety. I have rebuilt my life through art and the love of my family and friends. I implore those who are struggling: please find something or someone positive to cling to, search for help and build from there. There is always hope.”

Weighing in on the recent spate of national gun violence, U.S. Rep. Scott Peters (CA-52) voted to pass the Protecting Our Kids Act and the Federal Extreme Risk Protection Order Act. The Protecting Our Kids Act builds on the House of Representatives’ twice-passed legislation advancing universal background checks for all gun purchases, an action that is supported by nearly nine out of 10 Americans. That legislation has been blocked by Republicans in the Senate.

“It’s painful to recognize that the loss of countless innocent lives over decades led us here today,” said Peters. “Passing these bills to prevent more gun violence reflects the will of the American people. Now, we will continue fighting to get additional life-saving legislation over the finish line. I will not rest until the job is done.”

Added Peters, “The House also passed the Federal Extreme Risk Protection Order Act permitting law enforcement officers, family, and household members of a person who poses a threat to themselves or others to request that a federal court issue an extreme risk protection order to prohibit an individual from purchasing or possessing a firearm.

“The bill protects the right to lawfully possess a gun by requiring high standards of proof, an opportunity to be heard in court, the right to counsel, and penalties for those who file frivolous petitions. The legislation also encourages more states to adopt these red flag laws and requires law enforcement to be trained in the use of extreme risk protection orders.”

Two Point Loma residents, Jerry Lohla and Robert Tripp Jackson, reacted to the recent gun violence and mass shootings.

“Our national crisis with mass murders is too many insecure males collecting too many guns,” said Lohla. “Every nation has to deal with mental health issues, but the only reason why the U.S.A. is an outlier in mass murder is the prevalence of guns. We should not be turning our schools into armed fortresses. Our teachers want to teach, not defend against assaults by men with guns.”

Added Lohla: “The AR-15 is an ‘assault rifle.’ It is for assaulting an enemy. Assault, by definition, is for offense, not for any gun owner who claims he needs an AR-15 (or several) to defend his home. He is simply insecure about his masculinity. His AR-15 shows he has ‘performance’ issues.”

“I participated in a weapon’s safety course when I was 12 years old,” noted Jackson. “The instructor asked the group, ‘What is a gun used for?’ Some said, ‘to shoot targets and/or to hunt game.’ The instructor said, ‘No, a gun is used to kill.’ That always stood out for me. I believe everyone should take a gun safety course, not just answer a few questions on a quiz, as part of acquiring a weapon.”

Added Jackson: “We need to find a way to stop ghost guns that can’t be traced and simply ordered over the internet. We need extensive background checks that include juvenile records, and a deep dive into prior psych-related treatments or hospitalizations. Hold parents responsible to have their weapons and ammo locked up and away from minors or anyone else, which is in effect, but needs to be enforced.

“Consider school cops being armed and not teachers. But they need to be on campus during school hours, and there should be more than one for backup. Our Second Amendment right, established by our founding fathers, didn’t envision the type of weapons that are available today. Also, this isn’t the Wild West anymore.”

“We still don’t feel safe,” said Geller-Alford of Point Loma High. “We want to make sure that the people who do feel the need to express their Second Amendment rights and own a firearm have been background-checked, trained, and licensed to have one. There are a lot of extreme arguments on either end of this issue and I think banning all guns or arming teachers, are maybe not the solutions we want.

“There needs to be so much more regulation uniformly. This state has the most gun-control laws by far. But that in no way reflects the rest of our country. We are trying to highlight youth voices in the fight for gun control in light of Robb Elementary and the shooting, which is the deadliest mass shooting since Sandy Hook,” Geller-Alford said.

“It’s ridiculous that we still have to fight for our safety for our place of learning. We’re just trying to show our outrage at that. We’re in our finals weeks – and we’re still out here in the streets. It should be our whole City, our whole country, with us.”

The Protecting Our Kids Act includes:

• The Raise the Age Act to raise the purchasing age for most semi-automatic weapons to 21 years old. Currently, someone could buy a semi-automatic rifle at just 18 years old – yet you must be 21 to buy a handgun.

• The Prevent Gun Trafficking Act to crack down on gun trafficking and straw purchases to keep illegal guns off streets.
• The Untraceable Firearms Act outlaws ghost guns and ensures that all firearms are traceable.
• The Closing the Bump Stock Loophole Act to close the bump stock loophole, banning these deadly tools from civilian use.
• The Keep Americans Safe Act to outlaw new high-capacity magazines, which have been the accessory of choice in the bloodiest mass shootings.
• Strengthening safe storage requirements to protect children from accidental shootings.
• Requiring an annual report of demographic data of those determined ineligible to purchase guns.