Pennsylvania legislators must pass a “red-flag” law to keep guns out of the hands of dangerous people | Opinion

By Lt. Gov. Austin Davis

Earlier this year, I had the honor of becoming Pennsylvania’s first Black lieutenant governor and the youngest lieutenant governor in the country.

Next month, I will become something even more important – a father.

But I’m worried about bringing a daughter into the world when firearms are now the number one cause of death for young people in America. According to a survey conducted in March, half of young Americans reported they felt unsafe in the previous month, and four in 10 were worried about becoming a victim of gun violence or a mass shooting.

Of course, the threat of gun violence is not a new problem; it’s the issue that first brought me to public service. I was 15 years old, living in a working-class community near Pittsburgh with my mom and my sister, and gun violence came to our doorstep. Not 50 feet from our house, a man was shot. I decided to go to a city council meeting and find out what our representatives intended to do about it. I started a youth violence prevention program at my high school, and after graduating from college, I helped to start Allegheny County’s first violence prevention office.

Today this work is more important than ever. Last year there were more than 300 shootings on school property. In recent months we’ve experienced a wave of horrifying mass shootings. This year in our state, police officers have been shot and killed in Brackenridge, Philadelphia and my hometown of McKeesport, and in June we lost a State Police trooper in a shooting in rural central Pennsylvania.

Despite what you may hear, the epidemic of gun violence is not a “Philadelphia” or “Harrisburg” problem. It’s a uniquely American problem. But it’s a problem we can do something about.

In fact, there are glimmers of hope right now as elected officials, law enforcement and community members work together to address this violence. Homicides are declining in many major U.S. cities, including in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. This is cold comfort for those who have lost loved ones and the residents who have been traumatized, but it is evidence that efforts on the ground by law enforcement officers and community-led organizations are making an impact.

Public safety is one of the top priorities of the Shapiro-Davis Administration – and Pennsylvanians deserve to feel safe and be safe in their communities. Last month I launched a statewide “Safer Communities” tour as chair of the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency to learn more about the groups and individuals who are addressing gun violence in their communities.

In Pittsburgh, I met with Father Paul Abernathy, an Orthodox priest and Iraq War veteran who is leading the Neighborhood Resilience Project, which deploys a mobile trauma response unit across Allegheny County whenever there is a shooting.

I heard from Tiff Lowe, who once led a life of crime and now heads up York city’s Group Violence Intervention project.

In Allentown, I talked with Jeani Garcia, a mother whose son was murdered and who now works to stop the cycle of violence through the Promise Neighborhoods organization.

Hearing how these Pennsylvanians are turning their pain into purpose was truly inspiring. We need a comprehensive response to make sure their efforts aren’t in vain.

We must support common-sense gun safety proposals that have broad support amongst Americans of every political persuasion.

The Pennsylvania House recently took bold, bipartisan action on legislation that would require background checks on every sale of a firearm and provide a mechanism for loved ones, family members or law enforcement to ask a judge to hold a hearing to temporarily disarm someone in crisis, also known as an extreme risk protection order or “red flag” law.

I encourage my colleagues in the Pennsylvania Senate to take up these bills as soon as possible.

We must continue to invest in community-based organizations like the Neighborhood Resilience Project and Promise Neighborhoods of the Lehigh Valley. The Shapiro-Davis budget makes record state funding investments in grants and technical assistance to address community violence throughout the Commonwealth, including $40 million through the Violence Intervention and Prevention program, which has supported these organizations in their vital work.

Finally, we must address the root causes of violence, like poverty and unemployment. It’s critical that we create ladders of opportunity, through high-quality public schools, workforce development, apprenticeships and career and technical education, so every kid has the freedom to chart their own course and achieve their dreams.

That’s what I want for my daughter – a safe community and the opportunity for her to become whoever she wants to be.

Austin Davis is Lt. Governor of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.