On a Saturday tour of the scene of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School mass shooting that claimed the lives of 17 people, Vice President Kamala Harris urged more states to enact "red flag" legislation to reduce gun violence, USA Today reports. Harris met with victims' families where a gunman killed 14 students and three staff members on Valentine's Day 2018. Walking with U.S. Rep. Jared Moskowitz and the group of family members, Harris went through the building of blood-stained hallways, where the scene remains untouched since the shooting. In the gymnasium, Harris spoke about ways the Biden Administration aims to combat gun violence.
Harris encouraged states with red flag laws to use the millions of available federal dollars to implement them. Of the 21 states with red-flag laws, only six are using funds from the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which includes about $750 million to implement state crisis-intervention programs. U.S. lawmakers and officials have traveled to Parkland frequently in the past year to visit the untouched crime scene before its scheduled demolition this summer. Moskowitz, a Democrat who represents Parkland, has spent much of his time in Congress bringing lawmakers to Parkland to tour the building. He described the site as a “literal time capsule of one of the worst mass shootings in American history.” Advocating for gun violence prevention, since the Parkland mass shooting is a top priority for Moskowitz, a graduate of Stoneman Douglas.
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