It is urgent that the Massachusetts Senate not delay voting any longer on the gun violence legislation that was recently approved by the Massachusetts House of Representatives (HD4420) reaffirming the ban on assault weapons and addressing the problem of unregistered “ghost guns.” Despite the new Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson saying that the problem is not guns but the “human heart,” the U.S. has more gun deaths than any other country in the world.

Canada, Australia, the UK and Japan have stringent gun laws and virtually no mass shootings. The recent mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine is a reminder that it is critical that we update our gun violence laws to keep Massachusetts’ citizens safe. It is time for the Senate to pass this common-sense legislation. Please contact Senate President Karen Spilka at Karen.Spilka@masenate.gov or call her at 617-722-1077 and also contact your state senator to urge them to pass this critical legislation now!

David Arbeitman

Florence