Academy Award–winning actorMatthew McConaugheyattended the White House press briefing Tuesday afternoon to deliver remarks about the Uvalde, Texas, elementary school shooting — which killed19 students and two teacherson May 24 — and what it means for the future of the nation.
Around 2:30 p.m. local time, White House press secretaryKarine Jean-Pierreinvited McConaughey, 52, to the briefing room stage, where he called on Congress, as a father and gun owner, to not let this opportunity for change slip away.
“This should not be a partisan issue,” McConaughey said during hisemotional, 21-minute speech. “There is not a democratic or republican value in one single act of these shooters, but people in power have failed to act.”
McConaughey — who was born in Uvalde — and his wife,Camila Alves McConaughey, spent several days in the actor’s hometownvisiting with victims' families. They listened to numerous stories about the innocent lives lost, and came to realize that every single family shared a common goal: to make the massacre matter.
Matthew McConaughey shows the artwork of Uvalde shooting victim Alithia Ramirez during a White House press briefing.White House
“How can the loss of these lives matter?” McConaughey asked in the briefing. “While we honor and acknowledge the victims, we need to recognize that this time, it seems that something is different. There is the sense that perhaps there is a viable path forward [for enacting gun safety legislation].”
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McConaughey said that each person he has spoken with about gun violence — including families of shooting victims, Texas rangers, hunters, Border Patrol agents, and responsible gun owners who firmly believe in the Second Amendment — told him something to the effect of, “We want secure and safe schools, and we want gun laws that won’t make it so easy for the bad guys to get these damn guns.”
A makeshift memorial outside Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, where 19 children and two adults were fatally shot May 24.Michael M. Santiago/Getty
“Will you please ask yourselves: Can both sides rise above? Can both sides see beyond the political problem at hand and admit that we have a life-preservation problem on our hands?” McConaughey asked toward the close of his speech.
“We can’t truly be leaders if we’re only living for re-election.”
To express your opinion on gun reform proposals to your own representatives in Congress, you can look them up and contact them here:congress.gov/members
source: people.com
