[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 88 (Wednesday, May 24, 2023)]
[House]
[Page H2551]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1015

  One year later, I rise in mourning. I mourn the souls taken from 
their families in Buffalo. I mourn the children and teachers murdered 
in Uvalde. I mourn the thousands of Americans who have been shot to 
death in the year since.
  Mr. Speaker, allow me to share the stories of just a few of those 
Americans stolen away in the last year--stories from all walks of life, 
from every corner of this country, stories that were all cut short by 
weapons of war.
  Uziyah Garcia's friends said he was the fastest kid in fourth grade. 
He was obsessed with Fortnite. When he grew up, he wanted to be a 
police officer so he could help people.
  At 10 years old, he was shot to death in his classroom with an AR-15.
  Pearl Young was a substitute teacher for the Buffalo Public Schools. 
She ran her church's food pantry. She was the grandmother of 10 and the 
great-grandmother of seven.
  She was murdered while shopping for groceries with an AR-15.
  Aiden McCarthy's parents had planned a fun Fourth of July, taking him 
to the annual parade at Highland Park, Illinois.
  At 2 years old, both of Aiden's parents were murdered in front of him 
with an AR-15.
  Juliana Farmer had just moved to Louisville to start a new job. On 
Easter Sunday, she found out that she was about to become a grandmother 
of a baby girl.
  The next day, she went to work where she was shot to death with an 
AR-15.
  Daniela Mendoza was on the cusp of finishing fourth grade. She loved 
math, and her goal was to go to Texas A&M.
  Meanwhile, her sister Sofia was busy memorizing lines because she had 
the lead role in her class play. She wanted to go to college, too, and 
then her dream was to go on and win an Oscar.
  Daniela and Sophia were both murdered in front of their mother while 
shopping in a mall with an AR-15.
  This bloodshed is a choice. To my colleagues, have mercy on this 
country. If you care about public safety, let's vote to get these tools 
of carnage out of dangerous hands.
  Let's turn our thoughts and prayers into actions and solutions. If 
you really care, let's put an end to this daily calamity.

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