Do you remember when Georgia Governor Brian Kemp touted a rifle aimed at a young boy who was interested in dating Kemp’s teenage daughter in a 2018 primary election commercial? Here is a link to the commercial that helped him win the Republican primary election to face Stacey Abrams.

Do you remember when Governor Kemp signed into law a bill allowing anyone to carry a concealed handgun in public without a license from the state (Senate bill 319)? Kemp calls this a “constitutional carry law that says any person has the right to carry a weapon without a paper from the state.

This is reckless, and with our history of mass shootings in schools and churches, I have to wonder what people like Kemp think when they see grieving parents suffering from a loss more profound than we can imagine. I’ll tell you what he thinks and says: “We’ll fly the flags at half mast, and our thoughts and prayers are with the grieving students and parents in Winder, Georgia.” Guns are an evil in our midst.

Number 6

Georgia is in 6th place for the number of guns registered in the state. According to statistics that I’ve gathered, there are more than 2 million guns registered in the state. According to other data, about 49% of people in the state own guns.

Time to Act

The Governor of Georgia has to come out of hiding and speak directly to the people of Georgia about gun laws. How in the hell does a 14-year-old obtain an AR-15 rifle, carry it to school, and kill and injure innocent students and teachers who came to school to see their friends and learn from their esteemed teachers?

Public schools are the most important establishments in our towns, villages, and cities. A child’s parent sends her to schools to meet new friends, collaborate with others, and learn from the most significant members of our communities: public school teachers. Students, teachers, parents, and grandparents of Winder are grieving. What are Georgia politicians doing? Nothing, except for Democratic State Senators who want the Governor to call the legislature back to deal with gun violence bills that Georgia legislators have already proposed. And they won’t because if we say ban assault weapons, they scream, “Don’t you take our right away to own guns!.”

Do you remember the Governor saying yesterday that now is not the time to deal with gun violence? He said, “It’s time for grieving.” We can grieve and talk about how to make it safe for schools to be safe harbors for all of our students and teachers. Come on, Brian. Get out there and bring them back in.