Blumenthal & Murphy Honor Victims of Sandy Hook on Ninth Anniversary of Shooting

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – Earlier today, U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Chris Murphy (D-CT) spoke on the Senate Floor in honor of the twenty first-graders and six educators killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School nine years ago. Blumenthal and Murphy demanded Congress honor their lives by taking action to stop America’s gun violence epidemic, which has killed or injured over 900,000 Americans since that tragic day in Newtown, Connecticut.

“Today we remember not only what we lost, but also what we still need to do,” said Blumenthal. “We know what to do. We know what is necessary to help stop gun violence. There's no mystery here, and this movement, a political movement and social movement, can achieve it…As dark as December may seem, it is also a season of light. And the heroism of those families, of the first responders, of the community of Sandy Hook should provide us with the inspiration we need to honor those brave and wonderful children. To honor them with action, not just words.”

“[I]t’s a day that I will never, ever forget – etched into my brain. And we've come here likely every December 14th to memorialize another year having passed since Sandy Hook, and of course at some point you come to a loss for words. You can't figure out what new to say to your colleagues to try to explain what has happened to these families, to this community. Why there's such an aching for action, a disbelief that this country refuses to stand up and do something about the safety of our kids. Because while Newtown caught the nation's attention for good reason – 20 six and seven year olds vanishing from the earth in an instant – every single day there are mothers and fathers who are losing children to gun violence, gun violence, that's completely preventable,” said Murphy.

The video of Blumenthal’s remarks is available here. Video of Murphy’s remarks is available here.

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